Broken Dreams
by DrivesLikeACullen
Summary: Cassie Cullen's dreams are shattered when she is turned into a vampire. She joins the Cullen family. When conflict arises, Cassie must prove herself an asset to the family, and not a liability. Post Breaking Dawn.
1. Surprises

**Hey readers, **

**This is my first FanFic so please read and review! I want feedback…Please? **

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer is the genius behind Twilight. She owns all Twilight characters. Only Cassie is mine.

Prologue: Surprises

It was two days after my 16th birthday, and I wanted to go home. I was training with the rest of the U.S. Olympic women's gymnastics team down south, but longed to see my mother up in Alaska. I took a week off and got on a plane that very night. My plan was to surprise her at her little condo where she lived by herself while I was away training.

The plane ride was long and lonely. I pass the time thinking about how my dreams have all come true. all my hard work over the past 13 years has paid off. I have succeeded in reaching the top of the top. According to my coach, I'm the favorite to win the all-around, the vault, the beam, and the floor exercise. I can't even believe I'm in the Olympics; much less that I'm expected to win.

"Excuse me?" A woman in the seat behind me taped my shoulder twice. "I'm sorry, but are you Cassandra LaFayette?"

"I am." I smiled to her and heard an excited squeak from the seat directly behind mine.

"My daughter's a huge fan. We're Alaskan native too, so our local television stations are always doing features on you. Sara watches every one," the mother explained.

"Really? Wow, that's really cool." I turned my body so that I could see the little girl. She was bouncing in her seat, her brown eyes bright and excited. I had never seen such a wide and joyous smile. "Hi, Sara, I'm Cassie. It's very nice to meet you."

I spent the next few hours talking to Sara and her mother, Kate. When the plane landed, I turned back around to get my things and heard Sara ask Kate if she could take gymnastics lessons, and Kate tell Sara that they couldn't afford them right now. I walked with them out into the airport with them and after signing a few autographs and taking a few pictures, I exchanged e-mail addresses with Kate and promised to send her a list of the best gymnastics studios and schools. With my recommendation, she can probably get into any school for free. After giving my new friend a hug goodbye, I hailed a cab outside.

It was the middle of the night when I finally arrived home. I let myself in using the hidden key and tiptoed into the living room.

There was a strange gurgling sound coming from the kitchen, and I quietly went to investigate. What I saw depressed, angered, and repulsed me at the same time. The monster resembled a human but was obviously something more sinister. The creature was holding my lifeless mother; his mouth pressed against her throat. She was marble white and lifeless.

My instincts told me to run, and run I did. I could have won the gold at that speed. Maybe I have an alternative if gymnastics doesn't work out. I sprinted out the door and back down the street. The cab that had dropped me off was gone, and an eerie silence hovered over the street. I didn't even hear him behind me until I heard the ripping of… well, I'll spare you the gory details. I only remember flickers from that point on, as I faded in and out of consciousness. There was shouting and growling in the background. There was a man and a woman fretting over me, trying to keep me alive.

I distinctly remember the wind chime voice of the woman telling the man that "It's too late. If we try to suck it back out it will kill her. Her blood is already infected; she is changing." and then there was darkness and excruciating pain.


	2. Adjusting

**Special shout out to Twilightmaniac21; thanks for being my first reviewer!**

So that is how I came to be one of the world's most dangerous monsters. Alice and Jasper dragged me back to where they were staying in Denali, and I woke up there 3 days later.

I was in denial when they first told me what I was. There was no denying that I was a vampire, but I couldn't believe that it was real. I couldn't believe that there was no way for me to go back. I didn't believe that was possible since my dreams had been within my reach. I had felt what it was like to be a champion and a role model. I was on my way to the Olympics for crying out loud. There was no way that that could have been taken from me so quickly. There had to be a way that I could pick up right where I left off in life.

In time, I would come to accept the changes in my life for what they were; a new beginning for me. But before that, I had to start over. There was no going back. My dreams had truly been shattered. Alice and Jasper helped me a lot. They really took care of me through those depressing first weeks. They made me realize that no matter how much I complained and isolated myself from the rest of the family, there was no way that I was going to get my life or my real mother back.

They gave me a new outlook on life. I still hated what I was. The scent of blood didn't smell the same to me as it did to the others. It repulsed me. My first 4 months living as a newborn with the Cullens, I only hunted once. I only went at all because Jasper dragged me out. I didn't enjoy it at all; it was disgusting, why should I? Clearly, vampire life was not for me.

I just had to do the best with the circumstances that I had been given. There were some perks to this new life. Hanging out with Alice and Jasper made me realize my new talent. I am literally a copy cat. I can mirror the extra abilities and powers of others. I did it subconsciously at first, having no control over it. Spending so much time with Alice and Jasper, my mind would uncontrollably copy their powers without my realizing it. Jasper's ability is maddening. It was most unpleasant when I was going through my angry phase after my transformation. Being flooded with emotions isn't exactly a way to calm down. It was even worse when my anger got dispersed to the others. Manipulating their emotions was something that I couldn't control when I mirrored Jasper, so they ended up feeling exactly what I was feeling at the moment. It drove Rosalie crazy. I didn't need Edward's mind reading powers to know that she wanted me gone until I could control my powers.

That was then; once I would let them into my new life, Edward and Carlisle helped me to get control of my gift. Within months I was able to control my mirroring. I hadn't realized how tense I had been making every member of the family until that tension was lifted when I learned control. I had always assumed that that tension was all me. I was finally a part of the family. I finally fit in with the Cullen family. I felt like I belonged with Carlisle, Esme, Alice, Jasper, Emmett, Rosalie, Edward, Bella, and Renesmee. This was my new life, and I liked it.


	3. The way things are

**A/N: Sorry it's been so long. I'm actually in the middle of writing what I hope will be a novel someday. Wouldn't that look great on a college application? This story started on my outlet for curing writer's block. I'm going to keep going as long as people are actually interested. The lack of reviews is pretty discouraging. So please read and review.**

That was then; this is now. My family is totally adjusted to me, and I to them.

"Carlisle, do we have to?" I use my gift and mirror Jasper. With Jasper's ability, I make Carlisle want to agree with me and give me whatever I want. He shakes it off easily, having had so much practice keeping his head with Jasper.

"Stop, Cassie. You're all going to school. Besides, you didn't finish high school last time, remember?" That is true. My education was put on hold when I qualified for the Olympics, with the exception of the tutor that I pretended to listen to three times a week. I was planning to use some of the money I made being on the team to pay her not to come anymore. Then I was transformed.

But it's been 5 years since then and Nessie is all grown up. She stopped aging a bit earlier than we expected; she looks 16, so she and I will be in the same grade.

"Don't worry about it, Cass. We go to class, we sit together at lunch and pretend to eat, and before you know it, the day's over." Jasper eases me into the idea. I drop my mirror and venture outside to find Nessie.

Nessie and I are best friends. We have always been really close, and we have decided that we are going to stick together through high school. I find her out in the back yard with Jacob. We tried to convince him to come to school with us, but he looks a bit too old to be in high school still. He can hardly pass for his real age of 21. He moved up here to Denali, Alaska with us when we left Forks. He still sees his pack brothers every once in awhile. They don't come here often, usually Jake goes to them. I've never actually met them , now that I think of it. But if they're anything like Jake, there probably a riot.

"Hey guys. What are you going to do while were at school, Jake?" I didn't think of that before, but his only draw to our family is Nessie and Bella. I can't imagine that he would stick around with Esme while all of us at gone. As sweet as she is, I know he'd rather not stick around the "leech house".

"Don't know," he says, leaning against the fence behind him. Nessie leans into him, he pulls her close. They never hide anything around me. I look back toward the house, trying to figure where Bella might be. I feel the familiar pull of her ability that I am looking for coming from Alice and Jasper's room. It takes only a few seconds for me to mirror Bella and block Edward out of my head. I have made this a habit when I am with Jake and Nessie. I am her best friend and the sister that she can tell everything, she doesn't need my to tell her dad, even if I can't control it. I know from times that I've mirrored him that he tries to tune them out when they're together; give them a little privacy unless they get a little too loud. When that happens, daddy Edward goes in to get his little girl. So I'll keep him out of my head and he'll keep himself out of theirs unless there's a need. Sure, he'll see it in her mind or Jake's when they think about it later, but I feel like if I don't block him out, I'm betraying her somehow. I guess that's just the human in me.

"I wish you didn't have to go," Jake says.

"Me too. Maybe-"

"I already tried. We can't get out of it." I don't need to mirror Edward to know what she is thinking. If she didn't go to school, she's be free to spend the whole day with Jake while the others are out. No hope of that happening. "Watch your thoughts," I remind them. I don't want either of them getting carried away inside their minds; Edward would not like to hear that. These are exactly the kind of thoughts that get them in trouble.

Nessie smiles sheepishly and takes a half step back away from Jacob.

"We're going hunting in a bit, and your mom thinks it would be a good idea for you to go with us. You know, a few deer before we dive into a sea of humans tomorrow." She gives Jake a quick kiss and takes his hand and the three of us walk back to the house together. I break my mirror so that Edward can hear my thoughts again. _When are you finally going to let them get married? _

I see Edward and Bella in their room on the second floor. Like our house in Forks, Carlisle made the entire back wall of this house glass too. They are sitting together on the large couch watching Nessie and Jake in front of me. Edward locks eyes with me after my thought and taps his forehead then points to me. This is our signal; I pick up the aura of his ability and mirror him. The internal conversation begins.

_She's just a kid. I can't handle that, Cassie. You have to understand that. _Edward thinks.

_Of course I understand. I just think that it's sort of pointless to put it off. It's not like either of them are getting any older, and they're both incredibly mature. And you know they're never going to break up. You're just postponing the inevitable, Edward. I don't need to mirror Alice to know that. _We've had this conversation before, and it always ends the came way:

_I can't even think about this. _And with that, he stops paying any attention to my thoughts and tells Bella about our conversation. They both wear the same pained expression. They know as well as Alice and I do that there's really no reason to wait. She turns to look at me and shakes her head sadly. I can only guess at what she is thinking, having had no more success at breaking through her shield than Edward has. Neither of them can handle seeing their little (and I mean little. I think she's actually almost 10) girl grow up and get married.

Alice calls them from downstairs, and with a sweeping glance at me, they speed from the room. _Don't tell them anything about any of this, _Edward warns. I wasn't planning on it.

I explore a little using Edward's ability. Nessie and Jake are thinking only about each other. Alice is worrying that Jasper might have a hard time at school tomorrow. Emmett is weighing the chances of finding a bear this close to home. Rosalie is simply impatient, watching us walk at slightly more than human speed back to the house. Rose ahs accepted me since I joined her family and actually likes me now, but when she's unhappy, she makes our lives miserable. I hurry Nessie and Jake along, an automatic response to her impatience.

**A/N: This is my longest chapter yet. Please read and review! And while your logged on check out Twilightmaniac21's story called Can You Remember Our Past!**


	4. Preparations

**Sorry it's been so long. It's been a busy week.**

We walk through the sliding glass doors into the living room. Carlisle and Esme are on the sofa watching TV. They look up as we enter and turn the TV off a half second too late. I saw the icon on the screen. The Olympic ring emblazoned high above the crowds as the news reflected on the closing ceremonies that took place just two weeks ago. For the past two weeks, they had been interviewing the champions. It was very similar to the way it was four years ago, only this time, they hardly mentioned me at all.

Obviously, there was no going back after I was changed. The police found my mother dead in her apartment, but the never found me. The public immediately assumed that I had been kidnapped by some terrorist or someone who wanted to deny the United States of the gold medal that was surely mine. They sent in the CIA and the FBI to look for me; everyone was looking for me.

Nessie almost gave me away one day when Charlie was over. They were doing yet another broadcast about my life and the mystery behind my disappearance. Charlie started talking about the case and how his department was looking for me too. Nessie saw my picture on the screen and heard Charlie's words. She said so sweetly, "But Grandpa, Cassie's just upstairs, right?" I listened from my hiding place upstairs. I mirrored Edward, listening to him listen to Charlie's thoughts and formulate an excuse around them.

"Maybe you're right Nessie. Maybe she is in heaven; but maybe someone will find her." She was just a baby, it wasn't her fault. This satisfied Charlie; he was never the least bit suspicious.

I think the government took the CIA off the case after one year, because they were no closer to finding me than they were when they first started. The story didn't make the news much after the Olympics that I was recruited to compete in. Only when the second summer Olympics after my "death" started being planned and talked about, did my name appear in the headlines once more.

"They just showed some of your training tapes. They had some judges analyze it and they said that you could have won the gold without even trying," says Carlisle.

"Well that dream's shattered; so it doesn't matter now." Talking about my broken dreams always makes me grumpy; that's why the topic is usually avoided.

"Let's hunt!" says Emmett excitedly, breaking the uncomfortable silence. Nessie rests her hand on my shoulder and then walks out the door with Jake. Rose takes my hand as we follow the rest of the family outside.

"It's okay, Cass, you have us now." Jasper really understands what I am going through. Jasper is the only other one who could have had a life if vampires didn't exist. If he had not been changed, he would have risen through the ranks of the military and been great.

The others didn't have those options. Edward would have died of the Spanish Influenza had he not been changed. Bella choose this life; she had no life without Edward. Alice doesn't remember her human life, but she would have had a lifetime in the asylum. Emmett would have been killed by that bear. Rose would have been killed by her drunk fiancé and his friends. Esme jumped off a cliff intentionally trying to end her own life. This cycle had to begin somewhere; naturally, Carlisle would have been great at whatever he did in his life. But in his case, I think he is better suited for this life. If vampires have to exist, at least we can exist in a humane and peaceful way due to Carlisle and his conscience. He changed our lives. Without him, so many would be dead right now. Not just my brothers and sisters, but all the lives that he has saved through his medical practices over the last few centuries.

We run through the woods. I feel better being in the fresh air. I feel the freedom and exhilaration as I run. I run alongside Emmett, pushing him faster and faster until he cannot accelerate anymore. Bored with this speed, I challenge Edward. Bella's newborn strength and speed wore off at about the same time I was changed. My speed never decreased as I grew out of my newborn strength. I am just as fast now as I was when I was just turned. I push Edward harder than I did Emmett and he proves to be a much more worthy competitor.

He slows down after a few minutes of running as fast as we can push ourselves. I know he's not tired, he just doesn't like the distance that we have put between ourselves and the others; the distance between him and Bella. I laugh, and he laughs with me while we wait a few more seconds for the others to catch up. He is still smiling as he takes his place next to Bella, where he belongs.

"Show off," Emmett grumbles. Just for his entertainment, I do a back flip, rotating four times in the air before landing. When I hit the ground, I flash him an Olympic worthy smile and continue running.

We hunt for a few hours and then head home. Jake takes off when we get back to check on his pack. Rose and Alice brief Nessie on what to expect at school. Edward and Bella settle at the piano; Edward playing a beautiful composition while Bella picks at the keys at the top of the scale. Carlisle and Esme settle on the couch while Jasper and Emmett head out the garage to decide which cars we will be driving tomorrow. I just watch my family. As much as I resent what happened to me, I can't complain about the way that everything has turned out.

**A/N: Next chapter we're starting school with the Cullens…again. Let's see what happens this time around. I know the lack of action is probably boring some people to tears but a major conflict will be introduced either next chapter or the one after that depending on how much happens in school. Please bear with me.**

**I'm on school vacation this week so I'm going to try to update faster, but only if I think people are interested. Please Review! **


	5. Trust

**A/N: I know that I said that I would be updating more this week. I lied. I really meant to write more but it's been a really busy week. Between getting my butt kicked at track practice and college visits, I haven't had much time. So here I am now and here is my new chapter. **

"Nessie, wake up!" I burst into her bedroom and shake her awake. She groans and complains as I pull her sleepy form out of bed. Alice rushes in and dances around us. She throws together a few possible outfits for Nessie on our first day of school. She holds up one shirt, then another, then throws them both down and dashes down the hall to Edward and Bella's room. She returns seconds later with a few choice items from Bella's well stocked closet.

"Come on," she urges Nessie, "wake up!" Nessie's only answer is a groggy moan.

"I think we'll have to take action," Alice tells me. She whistles loudly, "here, boy! Come, Jake!" Nessie's eyes fly open at the sound of his name. Jake obediently peeks his head through the doorway, mentioning nothing about the way he was called and taking it as an opportunity to see Nessie.

"Time to get dresses, Ness," Alice commands. Nessie hurries to the bathroom while Jake stands out in the hall, waiting to say good morning until she emerges.

"Come on, Alice. I think she's all set now. Meet us at the house in 15 minutes, Ness!" With that I usher Alice out of the cottage and leave Nessie with Jake. We arrive at the house in mere minutes and are greeted by our family, waiting for us in the living room.

"Where's Nessie?" Wow, I saw that coming without mirroring Alice.

"She'll be here soon," I tell Edward.

"Are you ready for school, Cassie?" Esme asks.

"Yeah, I think so."

"You've got it easy, kid. You can just mirror Edward and not have to worry about actually paying attention. Wish I was that lucky," Emmett complains.

"Come sit down, Cassie," Carlisle calls from the couch. Nessie and Jake walk in the back door. "You come too, Nessie." We take the couch across from the chair which Carlisle is occupying.

"School isn't going to be like you remember it, Cassie. Your not going to be focusing so much on academics as you will be on self control." I want to interrupt him; to tell him that self control has rarely been a problem for me, but he raises his hand to silence me as I open my mouth to protest. "I know that you hardly have any problem with control, but your brothers and sister will be watching you closely, nonetheless. You must act as normal as possible; that goes for all of you. You have been a bit suspicious in the past," to relieve their confused expressions, Carlisle gestures to Bella, "You were a little to casual in Forks. It was easy enough for Bella to discover our secret."

"So what's the story this time?" Rosalie asks.

"Rose, Emmett, and Jasper are going to start as seniors, as usual. Alice, Edward and Bella are going as juniors. Which leaves Cassie and Nessie as freshmen."

Emmett's booming laugh echoes through the open space that is our living room. "Fresh meat!" he shouts.

"Grow up Emmett!" I shout back.

"Make me!"

"I'll race you-"

"That's enough!" Carlisle intervenes, "keep it under control, Cassie. You have to keep your temper in check. That's so important! We can't afford any mistakes. Don't make this difficult." Ouch!

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," I say, stung by his words. Does he really think that I am bound to make some stupid mistake? I know that he lacks confidence in me and that his trust in me is still shaky. He still hasn't gotten over my anger and instability from my first few months. Will he ever trust me the same way that he trusts my brothers and sister? I feel like such an outsider.

"Carlisle, I think she'll be fine," Edward sticks up for me in response to my thoughts.

"We need perfect, Edward. Fine just won't cut it." I understand where he's coming from; I cannot bring danger to this family or any innocent human for that matter. Still, Carlisle is never angry with anyone but me. I feel ashamed of myself for bringing out the worst in my new dad. I know that my behavior in the past is the source of his doubts, and I will prove him wrong. At least I understand where he's coming from.

I walk out the door and into the garage at vampire speed, careful not to slam the door behind me or break anything out of frustration. Yesterday I really wasn't looking forward to going to school, but today all I want is to earn Carlisle's trust. I promise myself that I will not let him down. I climb into the back of Edward's car and wait for the rest of my siblings. I unconsciously mirror Edward as I wonder what is going on inside. I hold onto his power just long enough to hear Carlisle warning them to keep a sharp eye on me before I drop my mirror. Seconds later Edward, Bella and Nessie climb into the car with me. Edward backs the car out without saying a word. Nessie waves to Jake waiting in the driveway as we drive away.

I can't stop thinking about the tone that Carlisle used with me in the house. I am hurt by his words.

"He's just worried about us all," Edward says in response to my thoughts.

"I know," I answer. I look at his eyes, staring at me in the rearview mirror, and take a deep breath. "I just feel like he's disappointed in me. Like I have to prove myself to him. I have to do something to make him trust me the way he trusts the rest of you."

"He was iffy about all of us at first, don't take it personally. You don't have to do anything, it will come in time."

"You know that's not true, Edward. He trusted all of you from the start because he created you, he choose you. And he knew Bella for so long before she joined the family. Nessie is his granddaughter. Alice and Jasper…well, who doesn't trust Alice, and Jasper has prove himself worthy of Carlisle's trust time and time again.

"I'm the outsider. I'm the Olympic has been…or should I say, never was. He didn't find me and change me; Alice and Jasper found me while I was changing. I feel like that separates me from everyone else. And stuff like that in the house makes me feel like maybe he wishes that Alice and Jasper hadn't saved me. It makes me feel like I'm a burden to him and Esme." Edward listens to my words and feels the indescribable emotion in my thoughts. Nessie leans across the seat to hug me.

"Carlisle's the only dad I have ever had, and I hate to feel like I have let him down even when I haven't done anything since that first few months. So it's like my biological father all over again; once again, I'm unwanted."

"We love you, Cassie, and we always will. No matter what you do that's not going to change. But you won't do anything so don't worry about that either." Bella sooths in a very motherly tone.

"Thanks, guys." I mirror Bella to block my mind for the rest of the ride.

We got to the school minutes later, Emmett, Rose, Alice and Jasper parked beside us in the parking lot and we made our way to the main office. The office was a rectangular room with school awards lining one wall. Against the opposite wall was a long counter where stood a plump middle-aged woman who gawked as the eight of us entered the office.

"Hello," Rose says to the woman, "we are the Cullen family. We are Rosalie and Japer Hale," she gestures to herself and Jasper, "and this is Emmett, Edward, Alice, Bella, Nessie, and Cassie Cullen. We are all adopted siblings." The receptionist has somewhat recovered from her surprise. She shakes her head quickly as if to regain her concentration and rifles through the papers on her desk.

"Welcome Cullen family. Here are your schedules. The senior homerooms are on the fourth floor, so Rosalie, Emmett, and Jasper; you can use the staircase down the hall to the right as soon as were done here. The same goes for Alice, Edward and Bella in the third floor with the juniors. Nessie and Cassie, your homerooms are right here on the first floor, just down the hall," she handed each of us various sheets of paper, fumbling slightly with the thick packets, "I hope you all enjoy it here. My name is Mrs. Reeca if you need anything."

"Here we go again." Emmett grumbles as we walk out of the office. We separate at the stairway, "see you at lunch," Alice calls as she walks up the stairs with the others. Nessie and I exchange a nervous glance as we set out down the hall to our new homeroom.

**A/N: So 7 reviews is pretty pathetic and really discouraging. Let's aim for at least 15, please. Hey, if we get to 20 I'll try to post some of my prom pics from this weekend on my profile!** **Will that get you to review? So I know that all this is really out of character for Carlisle but you can see where he's coming from right? Just how far will Cassie go to prove to him that she is worthy of his trust? If you don't review, you might not find out. **

**P.S. - I really will try to post more often but only if people are actually interested, so review!**


	6. School Days

**A/N: Just to clarify, Emmett, Jasper, and Rose are seniors and Bella, Alice and Edward are juniors. I messed that up last chapter. I had Carlisle say that they were sophomores and juniors but that was totally wrong. Sorry for the confusion. **

Nessie and I walk into homeroom together minutes before the bell rings. We introduce ourselves to the teacher who points us to two seats in the third row. We take our seats next to each other. The kids around us stare, this is an awkward moment. Nessie gives me an anxious and nervous look.

"Hi," I say to the girl sitting in front of me, "I'm Cassie, and this is my sister, Nessie. We just moved here from Washington."

"I'm Lacey. It's really nice to meet you."

"It's great to meet you, too," Nessie says, calmed by our warm reception.

Lacey looks thoughtful, but all is quiet in my head. I decided to wait until my first class actually started to mirror Edward. I still don't trust myself not to answer people's thoughts rather than words. Thinking back to this morning's conversation with Carlisle, it sounds really funny to say that.

"So how do you like it here?" Lacey asks, her tone implies that she is legitimately interested in our answer.

"We're getting used to it. Our father is a doctor, so we get moved around quite a lot. We go wherever he is most needed." I explain.

"That must be awful. I can't imagine moving around like that. You're lucky that you came in on the first day of freshman year because this is new for all of us. We are all in the same boat. It would be a lit harder to transfer." This is where things will get interesting.

"The rest of our brothers and sisters are transfers."

"Oh, how many other brothers and sisters do you have?"

"There's eight of us."

"Wow." Exactly the reaction I expected. "And all of you are in high school right now?"

"Yes. We're all adopted," says Nessie, "my biological brother, Edward, is a junior, and Cassie's biological sister, Bella, is too." This is the story this time around. It's easier for people to believe that Carlisle and Esme adopted most of us in pairs than it is for them to believe that they adopted eight children within a four age gap individually.

"Then there's the twins, Rosalie and Jasper. They're seniors," Nessie continues, "and last but not least, Alice and Emmett who are not related to each other but we love them anyway."

"We're all really close." I nudge my 'sister' affectionately. "We're more than siblings; we're best friends."

"Aww, that's so sweet. I wish I had a big family like yours. It must be so much fun at home."

"You have no idea."

Lacey is our first new friend on our first day of high school. Nessie and I have most of the same classes together. We head off to first period with Lacey. The three of us make new friend easily. By the time first period English starts, we know most of the kids in our English class.

Mr. Ross, our English teacher calls the class to order. At this point, I reach out my power. I feel through the thick walls, looking for Edward. I can feel the aura of Alice's power one floor up and at the opposite end of the hallway. Directly across the hall from her, I find Edward and Bella in the same class. I copy Edward's ability and suddenly my head explodes with sound. I have never used his talent in such a crowded place before. I blink a few times, surprised by the noise.

_Keep it together, Cassie. _Edward warns, seeing my surprise in my own mind. He and Bella are in History class. The teacher is explaining the course outcomes and passing out an official looking syllabus. Edward's mind is locked on mine, analyzing every move I make as I sit in my own class. His eyes are locked on Bella. Her expression clearly states that she knows that Edward is communicating with me. She gives me an encouraging smile through Edward.

Nessie notices my reaction and eyes me suspiciously. _You have her watching me, too? Don't you? _Edward sees the hostility in my mind. Nessie shouldn't be involved with this. I don't need the help but if something were to happen, she couldn't hold me back. What am I thinking? There is nothing to worry about and I am absolutely positive about that. There is no chance that anything is going to happen. I am completely under control.

I refocus my attention on the class. We will be studying Shakespeare's _Macbeth_ this year. Such a happy and uplifting story. I still remember it from high school. My tutor helped me fight my way through it and find the deepest meaning of the story. I remember sitting in the balcony that overlooked the gym at the start of my Olympic training and reading Shakespeare's words. A good human memory.

I give Nessie a bright smile and let my mind wonder outside the constraints of this classroom. I listen in my mind for any mention of my family; Edward is doing the same. We are keeping an eye out for anything that might be a problem for us.

_Those new kids are…different. The little brunette is really cute. _My face is pictured in the mind of a boy a few doors down.

_You see, Cassie, this can be really fun. _Edward smirks at my reaction to the boys thoughts..

_The one named Bella is really hot! I wonder if I got her on her own-. _

I stop listening to the boy on the third floor to better enjoy Edward's reaction to the kid's fantasies about his wife. His attitude is abruptly angry. I hope that boy gives up on Bella, for his own sake. I laugh at Edward and his anger toward that human. Doesn't he know by now that he is the only one for Bella? That she wouldn't give him up for anything?

_I know. You're right, Cassie. Thank you. _He calms down and returns his attention to the thoughts of other students, wincing slightly as he hears thoughts similar to those from the human boy.

_And Carlisle wants _me_ watched. Bella's beautiful, and everyone knows it. But we're new here and nobody knows us well enough to know that she is yours. Just relax Edward. _

The class ended after what seemed like an eternity. This was going to be a really long year.

"What class do you guys have next?" Lacey asks us as we walk down the hallway toward our new lockers. I look at my schedule for longer than necessary.

"Algebra. What about you?" I ask Nessie. She glances at her own schedule and confirms that she has the same. In truth, there are very few classes that we don't have together, but we'll deal with those when we get there. Lacey also has algebra next with us.

We walk into the classroom and take seats at the back of the room. Heads turn as we make our way through our classmates that are already seated. Lacey knows a lot of the kids in this class and she introduces us to Taylor, Joe, Brendan, Lauren, Jill, and Peter. They are all really nice and though they don't say it out loud, their thoughts reveal that the boys are attracted to us. This should be interesting. They all sit near us and we talk until the bell rings and the teacher, Ms. Conley, calls the class to order. As soon as class begins, my thought are elsewhere.

_Well aren't you just a little social butterfly?_

_Shut up, Edward. _

_No, I think it's great that you two are making friends. You're doing really well today. I'm proud of you, Cassie. I can feel the intensity of all the scents around you, but you haven't even flinched. _

_Thanks, Edward. To tell you the truth, I haven't really noticed how these humans smell. I'm not thirsty at all, and not tempted in the least._

_Keep it up, Cass. _I listen to the thoughts of my new friends.

_I really like them. I think we could be really good friends. _I think really think that Lacey could be a good friend to us too.

_That must be so cool to be a part of a family like that. I wonder what the rest of their family is like. _This thought comes from Jill, who imagines Nessie and me laughing with a bunch of teenagers who look like us.

_I wonder if they'll come to our start of school cook-out Friday night? _I listen while Joe runs over the details of the party: the limited guest list, the non-alcoholic beverages, the bonfire, the cookout food, the volleyball net that he has to put up sometime this week, and the songs that his band is going to play from the back deck. It sounds like it will be a fun time. Maybe we will go.

_We'll talk about it when we get home_. Edward responds to my thought.

Spanish class next period passes in a similar fashion. We talk before class and I scan their minds during class. I find nothing suspicious in any of their minds. They are legitimately interested in me and Nessie and our family. They are all very kind in their minds.

The bell rings at the end of Spanish signaling the beginning of the lunch hour. We walk into the massive cafeteria. Nessie and I join them in line to buy lunch. When we emerge from the lunch line, we follow our new friends to their table. I see my family across the café watching us. I wonder if they are mad that we aren't sitting with them. Their minds reveal that they are not.

I sit down at a seat that faces my family. I have a clear shot of their entire table between Brendan's and Lauren's head. Nessie sees them too, and smiles.

As soon as we sit down, Joe brings up the cookout that he was thinking of during algebra class. He invites up to come, and we talk about it for a few minutes; throwing around ideas for more games and such. I hear someone calling my name in their head. Reflexively, my head snaps up to look at my family.

_Don't make any definite plans yet. We haven't decided if we want Nessie to go yet. And are you sure that you can handle that? _

We continue our talk about the cookout for the rest of the period, and when the bell rings, I head off to history class with Lauren, Jill and Brendan while Nessie goes to biology with Lacey, Taylor and Joe.

History class is just as boring as I remember it being, so once again, I resort to my new favorite pastime until the end of the period. I don't find out anything interesting from my journey through the minds of my classmates; what a disappointment.

My biology class goes in the same manner. The same boring material that I have learned before. The boredom does not suit me well. All day I have been so good. Bored with the voices in my head, I ouch them toward the back of my mind. I start to notice something that I have been pushing out of my mind all day. I notice the scent of each member of my bio class. Their scents blending together and swirling apart. The delicious scent of their blood running through their veins. My throat burns as I take in the individual scents, but I am completely in control. I hear a familiar whisper and look up to see Edward and Emmett in the doorway. I hadn't heard them leave their classes because I was ignoring all thought at the moment.

_Don't worry about it. _I tell Edward in my mind, pushing away the thoughts of the blood until he was satisfied that there was nothing to worry about and left with Emmett.

When the final bell rings, I say goodbye to Lauren, Jill, and Brendan and go to my locker. Bella and Nessie are there. I gather my stuff and follow them out to the car. As we drive home, Nessie and I talk about our new friends and everything that happened throughout the day. The others have nothing interesting to talk about, having been through high school many times before.

Carlisle and Esme are in the living room when we get home. I mirror Edward again after having dropped it at the end of the school day. I want a bit of warning before I walk in to face whatever he has to say. His thoughts give nothing away, and I drop my mirror again.

I sit on the couch where I had sat this morning, waiting for whatever was going to happen next. Edward tells Carlisle how good I was all day, and out of responsibility mentions the incident last period; quickly saying that nothing was going to happen and that he was just being over cautious when he left his class to check on me.

"Let's not let that happen again," Carlisle say to me, "You know what's at stake here. And as good as it is that you have found new friends, I recommend you be very careful." With that he dismisses me and I run out into the backyard, past Jake and Nessie, I head to the orchard on the other side of the river behind the house. I sit there until morning when I have to go home and get ready for school again.

**A/N: Next chapter should be good. Sorry I haven't updated in awhile, but I'm a busy girl. I'll try to get next chapter up asap. Please review if you want, I'm done begging. **


	7. Potential

**A/N: I haven't mentioned this in awhile but I do not own Twilight or any of the original Twilight characters. The only characters that are mine are the ones that you can only find here, in this specific story. **

**MorrocialsMad, this chapter is for you. You said that you liked Cassie's relationship with Jasper, there's more Cassie-Jasper time here. **

The week passes very quickly and soon enough, it is Friday night. The first week of school has brought Nessie and me to be good friends with Lacey, Lauren, Jill, Taylor, Brendan, Joe and Peter. Bella drives us to Joe's house because neither Nessie nor I are supposed to be able to drive. The group is gathered in the backyard just finishing eating when we arrive fashionably late.

"Hey girls," Joe calls to us as we come through the gate together, "grab a plate! We'll wait for you to eat before we start to play.

"It's okay Joe, we went out to dinner with our family before we came. Friday night dinner is a tradition of ours that we couldn't get out of."

That satisfies them and the games begin. We play volleyball and Nessie and I are picked last for the teams until they realize how athletic we are. Who knew? We eventually become the most coveted players. We are both very careful not use our full strength.

The night ends with us laughing by the fireplace when Bella comes in the back gate to pick us up.

"Hi, she says to our friends, "I'm Cassie and Nessie's sister, Bella. It's really good to meet you all." She stays for a few minutes before she goes to wait for us in the car while we say goodbye to everyone. Our friends stare after her as she leaves. It was a really fun night, with some really good friends.

When we get home, I hear Jake's even breathing as he sleeps somewhere in the house. Nessie yawns as we walk inside and Bella sends her to bed. Everyone else is in the living room, so this is where Bella and I go.

Carlisle is pacing the room, Alice is sitting with her head in her hands on the couch. Jasper is next to her with is hand on her back. Edward comes over to us immediately and takes Bella in his arms. Rose and Emmett are together by the window. Esme is staring around at her family just like I am.

"What's going on?" I ask.

"We don't know exactly," Jasper says, "nothing has happened yet, but something is going to." Confused by this explanation, I mirror Edward and read Alice's mind.

"Alice," I say kneeling in front of her and looking into her eyes, "what did you see?" The images of her vision fill her mind. She sees our family, but not as it is now. Carlisle, Esme, Rose, Emmett, and Jake are gone. The rest of us stand there, our eyes bright crimson. Another flicker shows us a burned field, wisps of purple smoke spiraling upward from a pile of ash.

"But what is it?" I say, apparently to myself because nobody bothers to answer. I see a few theories forming in Jasper's mind. A vampire war, the Volturi, or a coven looking to take us out because of the size of our coven . I see Edward turning over these theories in his mind.

I drop the mind reading and mirror Alice, trying to see anything more than she did. I sit in the corner and try for hours, coming up with nothing at all. Once I am mentally exhausted I drop my mirror and just sit and think. Why did Alice's vision show me? Why not Esme? What's going to happen to us?

Everyone is on edge all weekend. Carlisle gives me warnings left and right. Now more than ever, it is important that we keep a low profile. It would be so much easier if we knew what we are dealing with.

Monday morning Carlisle gives me a long talk. It gets blown out and we end up yelling at each other. I just don't understand why he doesn't trust me like he does the rest of my siblings. He will never get over how I acted my first few months as a vampire. Does he not understand that that was before I let go of the past. I was hanging on so desperately because I was upset. He knows that I am different now but he still doesn't have the confidence in me that I feel I deserve. I end up running to school hours before I have to leave. I mirror Alice before I leave and sit in the woods behind the school searching the future. I see Jasper coming to get me before they pull into the parking lot. Sure enough, minutes later he is at my side, pulling me to my feet and toward the school.

"He never would have chosen to save me." I say bluntly, looking up at Jasper's face as we walk, "If he had found me that night, and not you and Alice; Carlisle wouldn't have saved me. He never wanted me in the first place. That's why he doesn't want to trust me. He doesn't think I deserve to be a part of this family. I'm not special enough. I've never done anything to better the family. I've only ever been a burden, never an asset."

I don't need him to tell me that I am right.

"Alice saw you coming," he says, stopping in our path, "a few days before we found you she saw a vampire following you. We don't know who he was, but he was always there. He watched you always, but you were never alone. Alice saw you decide to go home and see your mother and we knew that this was it. We told the family everything. Carlisle was really unsure, but Alice decided to go. While we were preparing to go, Alice had a vision of you as a vampire. You were completely out of control, more so than any newborn that we had ever seen. That would be the outcome if we went to save you.

"What the decision came down to was a matter of secrecy of our kind. We were sure that if your body was recovered after he killed you, there would be more studies done on it than has ever been done on a vampire victim. We knew that because of your status as a national symbol, they would try as hard as possible to find the answer. Alice saw someone figuring it out, discovering our secret, and all hell breaking loose. So we decided that we would stop it all together. We planned to kill the vampire following you before he got to you. That way, both options would be avoided.

"We were too late. We could have let him take you and cleaned up after him, but we just couldn't bear it, so we changed you. While you were changing, Alice had a vision of you again, out of control. Another vision told her that we might someday have to kill you ourselves. She never told Carlisle, but naturally he found out anyway. He will never forget that. He is afraid of your potential. That is why he doesn't trust you. Your behavior the first few months of your new life proved that you are capable of being as destructive as Alice saw you. Naturally, he loves you because you are family now, but he will always put the good of the family as a whole above any of us individually. He is afraid that something will happen to make that vision come true, and there will be nothing we can do to stop it. He doesn't want to trust you in case that does happen, it will make it easier on him if he isn't as attached to you as he is to us." I am still, thinking about all this. It makes sense. He doesn't want to accept me into his family in case I hurt them and he has to kill me. "Against his better judgment, he does love you. He doesn't want to, but he does anyway. And although you might think otherwise, he couldn't hurt you if he really had to. You've been in the same place with him for awhile. There will come a time to prove yourself and move forward in his eyes; to overcome what he expects of you. Then he will realize how valuable you are to us. He wants you to be the quiet girl in the background: part of things, but not influential; not the leader, but the follower. When you aren't, he gets unhappy with how attached to you we are. He wants you to be dependent, but instead your completely independent.

"He's just scared Cassie, you have to understand that."

I think about my conversation with Jasper throughout English, Algebra, and Spanish. I do understand. I do have to prove myself to Carlisle that I deserve his trust. I know that he loves me without meaning to. I love my family more than anything and I would do anything for them. Words alone are not enough for Carlisle, I have to act on them. He's looking for me to either be a little hero, or the quiet one in the background. That is what he wants from me. I can't be the girl to sit back and let the big kids do all the work in defending my family; I have to be with them.

I wonder where my siblings are right now. I didn't mirror Edward today and I don't feel like hearing everyone's thoughts when I am too overwhelmed with my own. I reach around with my own power. I feel Jasper's aura just a few doors down, and Alice's directly above me. I feel Edward in the library and Bella in the chemistry lab on the fourth floor. The only ones I can't feel are Emmett and Rose. I know they are around here somewhere, but I can't feel them because the don't have an aura for my power to pick up on.

Suddenly, I put it all together: Alice's vision with my new observation. The only members of my family that Alice didn't see with us are the ones who don't have spectacular extra senses. The ordinary vampires that have no real value in the real scheme of things.

I am still thinking of my revelation as I walk to lunch with Nessie and the rest of my friends. We buy lunch and sit at our usual table. I sit in my usual seat so that I can see my family. Edward is reading my mind. He listens to my theory and nods. I'm right and I know it; Edward knows it too. He turns away from me and starts to tell the rest of my family about my theory. I turn back to my friends and join in the conversation. They never noticed my seconds of distraction.

I see Alice's face go blank out of the corner of my eye and take my mirror to Edward for the first time today. I see the vision in her mind. There is no mistaking the billowing black robes that confirm one of Jasper's theories. Alice sees them completely disregarding their pretense and building themselves up. Their minds have been distorted by power, and that's all they want now. They want to expand that power.

So that's it; Aro's expanding his collection again. He's taking the ones he wants from the covens that he wants to weaken; and we're at the top of the list. He is going to come, and he is going to take what he wants and rid the world of the rest. _Am I right?_

_Probably._ I see Edward relaying everything that we know to Bella at vampire speed. She looks at Renesmee with worried eyes.

"Cassie?" Lacey calls my attention back to the table.

"Sorry," I say locking eyes with Nessie next to me. Lacey looks to see what I was staring at and her eyes widen as she sees my beautiful family. "Wow," she breathes, and the others turn and look too.

My family puts on a perfect show. They are laughing and talking while pushing around bits off food on their trays. Edward lets his gaze fall from where he was just looking at our table, creating the allusion that he just looked away from me.

"_That _is your family?" Lauren asks disbelievingly. All week Nessie and I directed their attention away from the table of vampires across the room. My friends had seen them separately, but not all together like they are now. They are a perfect picture when they are together.

"Yeah," Nessie replies. Reluctantly, they turn their faces back to the table, but their thoughts are in a completely different place than they were before. They are all marveling at the beauty of the 8 of us adopted siblings. They don't think past the beauty though. Not one person in this café has thought of us as inhuman.

The bell rings a few minutes later and I walk toward my family, taking Nessie by the arm and telling my friends that we will catch up with them. They watch us go before walking out of the café.

**A/N: FYI, this is going to be a really long story. You might think that you already know what is going to happen, but you're no Alice. I know this chapter's a bit choppy and somewhat confusing but it clears up some stuff and gets you thinking about others. **

**I got this chapter out really fast, but the next one might take a bit longer. Sorry! I'll try to get it up as fast as I can. **


	8. Complications

**A/N: Sorry it's been so long. Bear with me. **

Emmett leads us down the hall and into an empty classroom. I sit down on one of the desks and Bella takes Nessie into her arms. Edward joins them, embracing both of them. Rose is leaning against the desk next to mine. I take her hand and she wraps her other arm around Emmett's waist. He responds by pulling her into a tight hug and not letting go. She keeps my hand, squeezing it tightly.

"So what happens now?" I ask Jasper. Alice and Jasper are looking protectively at me. Even if Carlisle didn't want me, Alice and Jasper did. They choose me.

"We're not going down without a fight," Jasper says, "It sounds like they won't be coming for awhile. We have plenty of time to prepare."

"We need to talk to Carlisle," Edward says, "Anyone opposed to ditching the rest of the day?" No surprise, nobody has a problem with leaving early. I head to my locker with Nessie to get my things.

"Cassie! Nessie!" Lacey calls from the end of the empty hall. The bell already rang and everyone else is in class.

"Hey, Lace," I say. I can't hide the stress in my voice. She is taken back by my tone.

"What's wrong?" she asks curiously. Lacey has become a very good friend to Nessie and me.

"We had a family emergency. We have to leave early. Our siblings are taking us home." I explain.

"Oh, I hope everything's okay. Let me know if you need anything," says Lacey, "By the way, we were talking on our way to class and we're going to go to the movies on Friday night. Nessie, you can bring your boyfriend if you want; we all want to meet him."

"Yeah, sure," says Nessie, throwing her backpack over her shoulder.

"And I really do hope that everything's okay," says Lacey as she turns away. "Bye!" she calls over her shoulder as she continues on her way to the bathroom.

Nessie and I walk out to the parking lot without running into anyone else, our family is waiting for us there. They are all holding onto each other; all connected in some way. They welcome Nessie and me into their embrace and then we all pile into the two cars and speed from the school. We will tale any punishment that they want to give us for ditching school; we all know that it won't be the last time.

"Don't worry about it, Cassie. I went to the office and told them we had a family emergency before we left. We're not going to get in trouble for skipping." Edward replies to my thoughts.

"Did you dazzle them into letting us go? Because nobody else would have been allowed to leave without a call from a parent." Edward smiles. The rest of the ride home is quiet.

Everyone is thinking, but nobody is speaking. I need to help my family. If we are going to fight, then I want to be able to hold my own and be an asset to our side. It sounds like we have plenty of time to prepare. I bet Jasper would train me to fight. I also want to explore the limits of my power. If what Alice saw was correct, then I have the ability to be dangerous. I know that I have a very wide arsenal when it comes to confronting the Volturi as far as extra abilities go.

"You're right!" exclaims Edward as if he had forgotten my ability, "To be honest, I did forget. If we could throw their best stuff right back at them…" He trails off, lost in the possibilities. Bella smiles and rolls her eyes, grateful for that bit of relief.

Back at the house, we file into the dining room. Esme is not surprised to see that we have ditched school. She sits down next to where Carlisle is seated at the head of the table. The rest of us take our usual seats and wait. Edward and Alice take point and quickly explain our new discoveries to Carlisle. I mirror Edward, eager to hear everyone's thoughts on our new situation.

When Alice and Edward finish explaining, everyone sits quietly, letting Carlisle think it all over. I can hear the thoughts turning over in his head. He hates the idea of fighting the Volturi, but he knows that if we don't fight then half of our family will be destroyed and our way of life will cease to exist. He weighs the pros and cons of each choice carefully. In the end he decided to play with the time we have before they come.

"We will fight to keep our family and our way of life alive. We need to play on all our strengths and maybe bring other friends in again. Every vampire in the world is at risk right now, if we all stand together, we stand a better chance. This isn't like last time, when we were fighting for Renesmee. This is bigger than that." Carlisle looks around at each person at the table. "They have probably already started their recruiting. It sounds like they are assembling the strongest forces that they can; and it sounds like they plan to use them to eliminate us." All of our ears prick to the sound of running footsteps on the back porch. Jake walks into the dining room as the door clicks shut.

"Sorry I'm late, Doc," he says, standing behind Nessie and me, placing his hand on her shoulder.

"We have a problem, Jake. It looks like the Volturi are throwing out their own rules and taking full control of all vampires. They're building up their forces against us."

"Building up how?" Jake asks, confused.

"They are taking any vampire with talent, and making them one of them. They dispose of the rest. We can guarantee that their army will be more powerful then ever before when they get here." Carlisle says.

Jake hesitates, "I'll call in my brothers."

"This is like nothing before, Jacob. You have to understand that we won't stand a chance if they force vampire with powers like Zafrina's or Kate's; and we're doomed if they get Benjamin on their side. Their arsenal will be as strong as it has ever been. There is no guarantee that we can win even with your brothers' help."

"There's one thing you're forgetting, Carlisle," says Edward, "Cassie can at least match whatever they throw at us."

"It will be coming at us from all sides, Edward. She can't handle taking on the entire Volturi Guard at once."

"Hey, we all have our area of expertise," says Alice, "We have some of the basics covered between Bella and Edward alone. Plus me and Jasper-"

"Alice," says Jasper, "I agree with Carlisle. There is no doubt that we are a strong coven, but Aro has seen what we can do and will mot make the same mistake twice. I'll bet you anything that this time, they will make sure to avoid doing anything that you might see, and they'll probably try to find someone who can get around Bella's shield.

"But Edward has a point. The one thing that they wont be ready for is Cassie. I'm sure by now they know of her existence, but they don't know what she can do. Imagine if we gave them a taste of their own medicine. If we train properly, we might have a fighting chance.

"It's decided," he says looking pointedly at Alice, "we are going to fight."

I saw his intention in his head as he spoke the words, sure enough, Alice started having a vision of the future if we fight. She sees the family standing together, victorious. The only one missing from this happy picture, is me.

**A/N: This is a short chapter, I know. But I thought this was a pretty good place to leave off. I'm really excited about the next chapter! I'll try to finish it soon.**


	9. Heart to Heart

**A/N: Anybody else see the New Moon trailer at the MTV movie awards the other night? It was awesome! I'm so excited!**

**Anybody know why the settings for my document keep getting messed up? I have tried to post this chapter quite a few times (sorry to anyone who keeps getting alerts every time) it just keeps getting messed up!**

**Never mind... it worked right this time! Thanks for your patience and again I'm sorry to anyone who got alerts every time i tried to fix this!**

I know there are only two options left for my family. In the seconds following Alice's vision my mind began contemplating death while Alice searched for any alternative route that could possibly save us all, but came up blank every time. This is the best option for my family.

My family watches as Alice screws up her face in concentration and then get a blank stare in her eyes as she searches for a way to save me. In one corner of my mind I see the different outcomes that she comes out with; each one is fatal to multiple members of my family.

After minutes of trying, Alice sighs and looks at me apologetically. The sadness in her eyes is heartbreaking and I feel the urge to comfort her over my coming death. I suppress that urge and push my chair away from the table. I can hear the wondering in their minds and I decide to give them some space while they discuss strategy for the battle that will end my life.

I know that I should stay and pay attention. I know that I will not go down without a fight and I will lay down my life for the safety of my family. This, however is something that they need to talk about without me. I don't want more looks like the one I just got from Alice. I don't want to feel their suffering.

I head out the back door and start to run. I run out to the orchard half a dozen or so miles away. I arrive there in mere minutes and collapse on the ground, mentally and emotionally exhausted. The buzzing in my head does not stop, though I am a few miles out of the estimated range of Edward's power.

_There's no other option. _

_It's the best thing for the family._

_Her life has been so full of disappointment; I hate to think that it will end that way._

_She will die with honor, defending her family. That is the best death anyone could ask for._

_Is she still outside? _

_No, I can't hear her thoughts anymore. She's gone. _

Wait; Edward can't hear my thoughts? _You're lying! You're lying so that they leave me alone. _Edward does not reply to my thoughts. I can not hear my words in his mind. He really can't hear me. I'm out of his range, but he's not out of mine.

I get up and start running again, back to the house. I listen for my voice inside his mind to tell me where his power reach to. Finally I arrive inside the range of his mind reading. He hears the relief in my thoughts and I go over what just happened with him. I am still a few miles away from the house when I speed up, eager to talk about my powers with my family.

I race through the back yard and past Jake who is on the phone in the middle of the yard. Through his thoughts, I know that he is talking to Sam and asking the pack for help in the inevitable battle. They are going to come; Sam and Jake are working out the details now.

I race back through the house and back into the dining room where I look straight at Edward. He has already told the others and each are thinking the same thing.

"Your power enhances the power that it copies. I don't know why we have never noticed before." Edward says.

"It's possible that your powers are getting stronger," says Jasper. Carlisle's thoughts are uncomfortable at the idea of me getting even stronger. For the first time, I see the image that Alice saw of me while I was changing that they have always hidden from me. But I am not seeing this in Carlisle's mind. I am seeing it in Edward's. I give him a sharp look.

_You know that I am better than that, Edward. You know that that is never going to happen. You hear my every thoughts; if you won't trust me, who will? _

_You're right, Cassie. I do know you better than that. I know that you would never do that. I apologize for even thinking it. I've always got your back, sis._

_Thanks._

"Are you going to let us in on that silent conversation?" Alice asks, annoyed with the secrecy.

"Do you think that you could mirror multiple powers at once?" Edward asks, excited. Carlisle stands and leaves the room, his thoughts give away the sadness that he is feeling.

"I don't know but that would be something to try while we are training." Jasper is already working on setting up training schedules for each of us. He takes this into consideration and applies it to the lengthy list of things that I need to learn before we fight.

I follow Carlisle's path up to his study where he is hiding. I knock softly just to be polite before I open the door.

Carlisle is sitting with is elbows resting on his desk and his head in his hands. For the first time since I have known him, he looks like a man of 40. I drop my mirror so as not to intrude on his thoughts. I take the seat across from his desk.

"I'm sorry," he whispers, "I'm sorry that I have been so hard on you. I know that Japer told you everything and I hope that you understand. I know I was wrong to ever doubt you. You are stronger than any of us."

"Are you just saying that because I'm going to die, or do you really mean it?" What does one say to an untrustworthy daughter with a death sentence? Carlisle lifts his head off his hands and looks at me. He stands and comes around the desk to crouch down so that he is eye to eye with me. I can see the legitimate suffering and sadness in his eyes.

"I mean it, Cass. You are a huge part of this family, and I'll be damned if I let them take you from us." I laugh once at his joke and a flicker of joy touches his features. "I know I don't deserve your forgiveness, Cassie, but I'm asking for it anyway. I love you, sweetheart. I've seen the good inside you, though I didn't want to admit it to myself."

"No, you were right; I have yet to prove myself worthy of being a part of this family. I _do _understand, Carlisle. I know that no matter what happens I do owe it to you and to our family to fight for us. So that's what I am going to do; I'm going to train and learn how to fight and then maybe I can make you proud, because you deserve that from me. If I'm going down, I'm going to drag them down with me."

"Look at you; tonight, you proved that you are deserving of my trust. You are perfectly willing to die for your family and still do your part before you go. It is the goodness in your heart that counts the most. After everything you have been through, I didn't expect that to be there, but it is and I am so proud of you. No matter what happens, you are my daughter and I love you; that will never change." He wraps his strong arms around me and hugs me close. For the first time, I really feel like I belong; like he did choose me.

"Thanks, Dad," I say, gripping him harder. If it were possible for us to cry, we would both crying our eyes out right now. As I leave his study, Carlisle dials Tanya to warn our friends.

School on Tuesday drags, and Wednesday isn't any better. Finally it is Friday and I can hardly contain my excitement for the week to be over. I can't imagine how humans put up with school. For them, life is short. Why spend half of it bored to tears in school?

Friday night Jake drives Nessie and me to pick up Lacey at her house for the movie. She bounces toward the car and gasps as she takes in Jacob. His short sleeve shirt shows off all his muscles and he has the build of a 25 year old. It is hard to believe that he was 16 when he stopped aging. Nonetheless, his facial expressions still hold a boyish charm that never changes no matter how many years go by.

Lacey seems to like what she sees because she climbs into the back of the car with a huge smile across her face. "Oh my God!" she mouths to me next to her. In the front seat, Jake chuckles too softly for her to hear.

"Lacey, this is my boyfriend, Jacob. Jake, this is our new best friend, Lacey," says Nessie proudly.

"Hey Lacey," says Jake smoothly, "how's it going?" Every supernatural being in the car hears poor Lacey's heart rate speed up slightly. Nessie glares at Jake but soon lets it go as he takes her hand in his. I decide to smooth over the awkwardness.

"Hey Jake, when are the guys coming?" His pack brothers are coming to here to Alaska to train with us and help sort things out for the battle.

"They'll be here bright and early tomorrow morning. They can't wait to see you guys; especially you, Ness." He smiles at her. She smiles back and then he turns to look back at the road. When Nessie turns her head out the side window, Jake looks at her again like she is his own personal sun. She is the center of his universe, and that will never ever change.

"So what was with Brendan in Algebra yesterday?" I ask Lacey.

"Oh that was no biggie. He likes Lauren now and he was just being shy. They would be so cute together. I think they should date."

"Yeah, they would be cute. Speaking of cute, what about you and Peter? You two have been getting along extraordinarily well lately."

"You already know that I like him. That's no secret. What should I do?"

"I don't know. Jake, what do you think?" Nessie asks, trying to keep him in the conversation. "Let's get a guy's opinion."

"Well, are you guys just friendly friends, or best friends? And how strongly do you feel about him?"

"I really like him, and we're just friendly friends. Cassie and Nessie are my best friends."

"How do you think he feels about you?"

"I think he likes me, too. Do you think it would ruin our friendship though?"

"Heartbreak can ruin your life," he says sourly, "until you find the person that you're meant to be with." He smiles at Nessie and grips her hand tighter in his own. Jake knows a thing or two about heart break.

"I once fell in love with my best friend," Jake says. He doesn't often talk about his time with Bella.

"How'd that work out?" Jake hesitates.

"She fell in love with somebody else. It all worked out in the end though because I found Nessie."

"Aww, that's so cute. You two are adorable. Why can't we have that?" Lacey asks me. Does she think I want a boyfriend?

"I really can't understand why you don't have a boyfriend, Cassie. I mean, you're drop dead gorgeous," she has no idea how dead, "and every guy at school wants you. You could have absolutely anyone."

"I don't have time for a boyfriend. And I don't want one right now, anyway."

Jake parks the car in the movie theater parking lot. We walk together to the lobby of the theatre. Nessie hangs on Jake's arm and Lacey and I walk in front of them. Jake buys our tickets and we join Taylor, Joe, Brendan, Jill, Lauren and Peter back in the lobby and introduce Jake to the group. Together we go into the auditorium. I take a seat between Nessie and Lacey. Naturally, to Nessie's left is Jake. To Lacey's right is Peter. Lauren and Brendan are next to him. Jill, Joe and Taylor are at the other end of the row.

The previews come on; one for a movie called T_wilight_, another for the new _Harry Potter_ movie. The beginning credits for _Slumdog Millionaire _**(terrific movie, FYI) **blur across the screen as I listen to the whispered voices of the people sitting a few rows back. Their uninteresting conversation leaves me watching the movie again and trying to block them out. As the boys run through the slum to escape the officer that is chasing them, the couple finally stops talking.

By the middle of the movie, Nessie is making out with Jake to my left and Lacey is making out with Peter to my right. It is a bit awkward but coming from a house of vampires in love, I am kind of used to it by now. Nevertheless, I am thankful when they break apart before the movie ends.

We sit in our seats talking in a group while the end credit fly across the screen. After we get kicked out of the auditorium, we all walk out to the benches in the atrium of the outdoor shopping center. We talk for over an hour before Lacey realizes that she is almost late for curfew and we take her home.

**A/N: Like that nice heart to heart with Carlisle? I've got to say, I didn't really like the grumpy Carlisle much myself, but I needed a little tension to ignite her thirst to prove herself. **

**By the way, if you haven't seen **_**Slumdog Millionaire**_**, I definitely recommend it to anyone who is over the age of 16! It's a fantastic movie, but I wouldn't let my 13 year old sister see it, so be advised. **

**Thought this chapter was pretty long already, and the part with the wolves next is going to be really long so this is where I am breaking it up. Stay tuned.**


	10. Don't hate me!

**A/N: I know, I hate that I'm doing this, too. Sorry I haven't updated in so long and now I give you this sorry excuse why. I've been really busy for the past few weeks. You know how at the end of the year teachers realize that they haven't covered half of the stuff that will be on the final? Then they decide to try to get through it in two weeks? That's what my past few weeks have been like. Luckily, I have finals this week and then I'm officially out for the summer. So I will be updating the next chance I get, but that probably won't be until next week. When I do, I promise you won't be disappointed. **

**Sorry! Don't forget me! **

**And for anyone who was wondering, I'm almost done with the base work of my other fanfiction project, **_**Windchime Voice**_**. I won't be starting that one until summer, but it's going to be pretty cool when I get around to it. **

**Special Recommendation: I just finished reading the best book! ****The Hunger Games**** by Suzanne Collins! I definitely recommend it! The sequel comes out in September so this is a good summer read. I hope you love it as much as I did!**

**Thanks for sticking with me!**

**~K**


	11. The Pup

**A/N: I would like to dedicate this chapter to my best friend Jill and her brother Brendan! (Yes, they are the same Jill and Brendan that Cassie is friends with.) You guys are the best! Thanks for your support. **

**Jill is new to fanfiction and she is a fantastic writer. Anyone reading this definitely has to read her new story called All Alone by JasperAndJill! I guarantee you'll love it!**

I spend the night alone; just walking and thinking. When I finally arrived back at the house at 3 in the morning, everyone was waiting for me on the front steps.

"Time to go and meet the wolves," Bella informed me.

When we get to a field very much like the one in Forks, there is nobody there. We all relax being in the middle of nowhere where we don't have to hide. Jasper tackles Emmett and they get into a mock brawl. Rose and Alice just ignore them, having seen their playful fights too many times before. Edward takes Bella's hand and they race each other around the clearing. It is the first time I have never seen my family free and open like this. Nessie and I watch, glad to see our family enjoying themselves. Every few seconds she looks over her shoulder into the woods. I know she is looking for Jake and his pack to arrive.

"Come on, Nessie!" I shout as I start to run, too. I have run like this through the woods, but this is different. Being out in the open and not having to hide makes this experience even better. I an hear Nessie following me but she can't catch me as I pour on the speed and run faster until I feel like I am flying.

It seems like hours before I hear the rustling of the trees somewhere in the distance that means that the pack is about to arrive. Suddenly, Emmett steps into my path while I am running. Vampire or not, running into Emmett at this speed won't feel good. I make a quick decision that will wipe that smirk right off his face. I jump and vault off of his shoulders. I rotate half a dozen times in the air before sticking the landing.

I hear a grumbling that doesn't belong to Emmett. I look over to see my entire family as well as a large pack of about 10 wolves staring at me. All I can do is giggle at my obliviousness as I walk to stand behind Alice and Jasper. My family is arranged in a slight semi- circle curved toward the wolves. Nessie is standing at the very end of our line next to a russet colored wolf which I know is Jake. I have seen him in his wolf form before, but never in the presence of other wolves. He is one of the biggest, besides the black one that stands in the middle. Every eye is still on me. If I could blush, I would be burning scarlet by now.

"Don't worry about it, Cassie. They're impressed'" Edward tells me. Jake nods vigorously. Edward subtly taps his forehead and waves his finger in a lazy way in my direction. I take this as his way of signaling me to mirror him without drawing too much attention to the wolves. I pick up his aura and tune into the minds around me.

_That was incredible! Why didn't you tell us that she was so fast Jake? _

_I didn't know she was _that _fast! Don't worry about it, guys. She's harmless. _

_She seems pretty cool to me. _

_Shut up, Seth. Crazy hormonal- _A girl wolf?

_Yeah, _Edward replies to my thought, _they were surprised when that happened, too. _

The wolves communicate inside their minds, just like me and Edward! This is so cool! I feel like we are eavesdropping because we can hear their thoughts and each others but they can't hear ours. This is going to take some getting used to.

_Edward, tell your father that we apologize for being late. We had another boy change up in your area late last night and we needed to welcome him to the pack. The others are still with him now. They are coming later. _I see the images in his mind as all the wolves recount the event as one. I gasp out loud when I see the trembling face of the newest member of their pack. Carlisle looks at me, but I look at Jake.

"Brendan?" I mouth to him. Jake just nods in response. _It's something about the movies, I guess. _His pack looks at him. I read his mind again. Brendan doesn't look at all like a descendant, but apparently some part of him is. I noticed that he was very tall and muscular before, but I never thought any deeper into that. I guess I should have seen that coming. Now, Jake is replaying the scene at the movie theater when he first met Brendan. He compares last night to the night almost 7 years ago when he changed after going to the movies with Bella. _There's just something about you Cullen girls._

Jake looks back toward his brothers who are staring questioningly between me and Jake. _Remember what I told you about her powers? Right now she is using Edward's power; so she can hear us just like he can. _They all turn to look at me. I smile and shrug my shoulders; I don't really know how to respond.

Edward explains the situation to the rest of my family. We decide not to wait for the rest of the pack before we get started. We all move out further into the field and spread out in a loose circle around Edward and Jasper, both of whom are looking at me.

"We need to strengthen our strengths. We have quite a few advantages on our side, but we want as many more as we can get." Jasper addresses the wolves, "They don't know that there are so many of you. They have no idea the power that comes with numbers like yours. I think that the pack should try practicing with us. Obviously, don't really kill any of us but just to see how you stand up to our individual talents. It will get you ready for when you have to face vampires with talents superior to ours. They will be much more challenging than the newborns were. Don't underestimate any of them. They were all individually chosen and the ones that weren't good enough to join them were destroyed. We should tell you that only a few are talented enough to be coveted by the Volturi; the rest of us would be among those who were destroyed. We are weaker only in numbers."

"I think that is a crucial point, Jasper," says Carlisle, "the entire Volturi guard is made up of vampires with talents and gifts that you couldn't possibly imagine. That is the only way they were allowed to live. We have a few with talents, but even that might not be enough. That being said, keep in mind that the practice fights that Jasper has recommended will not be nearly as difficult as a real fight with a member of the Volturi Guard."

"Well said, Carlisle," says Edward, "we, being the vampires will take turns throwing as much skill and speed at you as we can. We'll let you size us up and decide the best course of action for you.

"I'll begin."

We extend the circle out to give him room in the middle. I can hear the wolves making decisions in their minds.

_I'll take him, Sam. _Jake volunteers.

_That's a good idea, Jake. Why don't you and I show the pups how it's done before we send them out there._

_I can do it, Sam._

_Sit and stay, Seth! _

_Good boy! _Jake chuckles.

Sam and Jake step into the center of the circle. Next to me, Nessie starts biting on her nail as she watches the love of her life circling her father.

_Go Jake, wait…uh. Just don't hurt him, Dad. _

_Faster, Jake. _Sam continued to instruct Jake as they moved faster around Edward and Edward responded to their moves just a second before they did anything.

_This isn't going to work. They don't have any mind readers, do they. _Sam sounds defeated. Nessie stops gnawing on her finger nails when Jake and Sam slow to a walk and Edward straightens out of his crouch.

"No, they don't," Edward answers Sam's thoughts, "Not like me, anyway. I guess it wasn't fair for me to start. But your tactics worked flawlessly; I couldn't get anywhere near you. Maybe you should practice with Jasper first."

Jasper steps forward to take Edward's place and the circling begins again. This time, the wolves actually have a fighting chance. Jasper moves expertly from centuries of practice, but he alone is no match for the two wolves. They move like lightening for a few more minutes. The watching wolves listen intently to the instructions that Sam is giving Jake and the advice that he is saying to them. Finally, after another few minutes of fighting, they stop moving. I hear the other wolves celebrating inside their minds as the see Jasper on the ground and Sam with his front paw on Jasper's throat. Jake is at his arm, ready to rip it clean off. After a few seconds, both wolves back away from Jasper. Jasper leaps to his feet and congratulates the wolves. He makes comments on some of their tactics before sending Rose into the center of the circle. Sam sends out Seth and Embry.

Seth and Embry work well against Rose. This fight lasts longer than the last one. After about a half an hour, the wolves pin Rosalie to the ground.

"Damn it!" shouts Rose. The wolves back up and she stands up. Emmett takes the next turn against Quill and two younger wolves. This fight lasts as long as the last one. The sun is just starting to rise over the trees surrounding the field. The purple glow in the sky is growing gradually lighter. When at last Emmett is pinned, Bella takes a turn against three young wolves. This fight lasts a lot longer than the others. Bella is a decent fighter and the young wolves have a hard time taking her down. With a lot of practice, they could all be as good as Sam and Jake, but they are not quite there yet. In the end, they succeed and Edward lets out the breath that he has been holding ever since Bella stepped into the center of the circle as she walks back to stand in the safety of his arms.

"Can I have a turn?" I ask Jasper. Jasper looks at me then at Carlisle.

"Cassie, I don't think that's a great idea," I see Alice's vision in his mind. He grins sheepishly when he realizes that I saw that. That is the reason that he doesn't want me to fight. He doesn't trust me not to kill the wolves. Edward comes over to me.

"What we need you to do is explore your power more thoroughly. Push it to it's limits. Play around a little. See exactly what you can do. You are going to indispensable during the fight."

"Right up until the end," I say sourly. I walk to the edge of the field and sit in the grass. I curl up into a little ball and close my eyes. I stop mirroring Edward and trace the auras of my family. I feel Bella and Nessie retreating to the opposite corner of the field to watch the proceedings. I feel Edward and Jasper fighting in the center of the circle and Alice on the outside of it. Just for fun I mirror Bella and shield Edward. I hear his reaction as Jasper catches him off guard for the first time ever.

"Cassie!" Edward shouts accusingly. I just laugh and continue exploring my mind. I keep my shield on Edward so that Jasper can have a little fun. I can smell the wolves between me and Edward and Jasper. They make mo sound. I wonder what they think of Edwards without his mind reading.

_Not so great without his mind reading, is he? _

_He relies on it so much, he doesn't know what to do without it._

My eyes fly open and I look at Jasper and Edward. Edward is getting his ass kicked to say it simply. I am blocking Edward's mind reading with Bella's power; but I can hear the wolves. I am using Bella's power at the same time that I am using Edward's. This is insane!

Jasper pins Edward and Emmett shrieks. Beating Edward is unprecedented. Emmett challenges Edward and Edward takes him up on it reluctantly. They face each other in the middle of the circle. Emmett's strength is too much for Edward to take. Again, he is getting pounded.

Another thought crosses my mind. What if I was only able to use Edward's power because he was impaired by Bella's? I drop my mirror of Bella. Emmett shrieks as Edward gets his advantage back and he starts losing once again. I ignore him and try to mirror Nessie.

"Jake!" I call. He looks over to me from where he is sitting with Nessie. I wave him over to me. Nessie comes with him and Edward joins Bella in the corner. "I need to try something," I tell Jake and place my hand on his furry face. I can still hear his thoughts and as soon as my hand touches his cheek, I can hear his response to my thoughts that he is hearing in his head.

_Wow, this is so cool! It's like when you and Edward talk inside your minds._

_I know, right! I just figured this out. _

I hear other thoughts in his mind. More voices communicating.

_What is that? _I ask him.

_The rest of the pack is here. _

"Stay there, girls," Edward calls to us.

Jake backs away from me and Nessie and turns to the end of the clearing where we can hear the pack approaching now. We stay where we are while he goes to greet the new arrivals. Eight wolves file into the clearing. The bigger ones are in the front while the smaller ones are in the back. The second to last wolf is very small and blond. He looks timid and uncomfortable he hesitates at the end of the woods. The bigger brown wolf behind him gives him a little nudge into the clearing. Brendan looks at my family with some recognition. I mirror Edward and hear his thoughts.

_I know them! Are they really vampires? Do Nessie and Cassie know?_

_Of course they do. _I see the image of Nessie and me sitting at the edge of the woods in the mind of the bigger brown wolf. Brendan sees it too.

_There here! _

_He's a little slow isn't he. _

_He's in shock. Leave him alone, Paul. This is a lot to throw at a kid at once._

_They're vampires too, Brendan. _

_Nessie's half vampire, half human. _Jake interjects.

_Um…oh. Wow. Um… why didn't I see that before? Huh…_His shocked thoughts don't make much sense. Nessie and I stay in the corner like Edward told us to.

_We're good, Sam. Let's get started here. _

"They want us to continue what we were doing and they will join in," Edward tells the others, " I think we've put it off long enough; Cassie, Nessie it's time for you two to show us what you can do."

**A/N: Once again I want to remind everyone to check out JasperAndJill's All Alone. Thanks to everyone who reads this! Please keep reading. There's a lot more to come. The conflict that I promised so many chapters ago is almost here. I hope you enjoy our new wolf! He's super cool! I promise that you will be seeing more of him. **

**Thanks again, **

**~K **


	12. The Visitor

**A/N: Please tell me you checked out JasperAndJill. If not, you're missing out. That story is fantastic! Please show her the love that you so amazingly show me. By the way, half of this was written at three in the morning, the other half was written as I sit her on the couch with a fever on the day after my birthday.**

I look over at Nessie. She nods to me, signaling for me to go first. I step out onto the field and feel the eyes of every being present on me. I take my place at the center of a loose circle that has formed around the field. I close my eyes and listen to the movement around me as my opponent is chosen among the others. I open my eyes to find Jasper in front of me. Emmet and Edward are waiting close to the center of the circle in case they should need to step in. I mirror Edward and focus on reading Jasper's mind as he decides what to do with me. On the sidelines, Carlisle, Edward and Alice are all thinking the same. They are reliving the scene from Alice's vision all those years ago. They are half expecting me to snap; to become the monster that I have the potential to be. They are thinking that now will be the time for that vision to come true.

Jasper crouches in front of me, waiting for me to ready myself. I crouch in return and tune into his mind. His experience and talent are far superior to mine but reading his mind make it easier for me. We start moving fast. He is circling me and I respond on the defensive by reacting to his thoughts. I swerve to avoid his clawing hands as they whip past me, missing me by mere inches every time. I try to find any opening or any sign of weakness in his mind so that I can get ahead, but I find none. I decide to try out my new-found power a little more. I hold my mirror on Edward and also pick up Jasper's aura. I intensify his feelings of rage and then turn it into fear. He takes the sudden change in emotion hard and falters as his mind clouds and he becomes confused. I take advantage of his moment of disorientation to take off in a different direction. I play with his emotions a bit more before he catches on to my routine and smoothes out his mind.

I drop my mirrors on Jasper and Edward and decide to go with a different approach. I reach out with my powers and feel into the auras of those around me. I tap into each at random. Using this technique, I catch glimpses of the future, and bit of everyone's thoughts. Jasper's mind is a jumble of thoughts that are incoherent at the moment and nobody else has any advice for me. I look up into Jasper's menacing eyes as he lunges for me. I pick up on another aura and suddenly Jasper in on the ground, writhing in pain. I can't take my eyes off him as he twitches on the ground. I break my gaze when Edward's hand comes down hard on my shoulder. As soon as I look away, Jasper stops twitching and lays silently on the ground. He stares up at Edward with a horrified expression. Whatever vampire I took those powers from is closer than they are welcome to be.

"What was that?" Bella exclaims. Edward puts up a hand to silence her.

"Jane," he says sternly. His entire body tenses as he looks around the perimeter of the field. The confusion around the field is obvious. The wolves are looking at me and Edward, trying to figure out what is going on. The vampires have set their gaze around the outskirts of he field, just like Edward has. The others still can't sense her, but they know that she's there because of me. She is still out of range of Edward's powers, but not mine. I can feel her aura coming closer and closer until Edward's head snaps around as he hears her thoughts approaching. All we can do is wait.

She stepped out of the woods into the field. The wolves growled menacingly. They grouped together facing the tiny Jane. I feel Bella pull her shield around all of us, protecting us from Jane's powers.

"Hello, Jane," Carlisle says smoothly. He takes a step toward her; Edward, Jasper and Emmett close behind him at the same time that Jacob positions himself protectively in front of Nessie. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Brendan lingering awkwardly behind the pack. His hatred of Jane is clear, but he is still a bit unsure of himself. What an exciting day this has been for him.

"Good morning, Carlisle. It's so good to see you all again. Aro sends his regards."

"You've come alone, Jane? I cannot believe that you ventured all the way here to see us by yourself."

"I have come to inform you of our new policies in Italy. We are recruiting some of the best vampires in the world at the moment. I have come to issue an invitation to certain members of your family. Aro wishes for them to join us. He wishes to offer his leadership to Edward, Alice, Bella and Jasper."

_So this is it. There going to offer us the chance to come quietly before they rip the rest to shreds. _

Edward and I both of us see the truth of his theory in Jane's mind with his power. She has come to gather new talent for their army and those who don't possess them will be deemed useless. If the ones they want comply, they will take down the rest within a few days. We have to stick together.

After a moment of uncomfortable silence broken only by the continued growling of the wolves, Jane notices me.

"Hello, young one. We have not been introduced. I am Jane of the Volturi." Jane hold out her hand, waiting for me to shake it. What she is really doing is getting me away form my family and sizing me up. This much I see in her head, though she doesn't know it. She is not careful about her thoughts. She doesn't seem to care that Edward can read them, and she is unaware that I can too.

I hesitantly take a few steps forward but do not reach for her hand. Her crimson eyes bore into my gold ones. She raises one eyebrow impatiently, waiting for me to introduce myself. I stand my ground. I'm not going any closer to her. She scares the crap out of me. I see a disturbing image in my mind that scares me even more. She is thinking about me on the ground screaming in pain and begging her to make it stop. The thoughts twist my stomach. Edward tenses beside me. Jane smiles a devious smile at me. When I don't react to her power, Jane glares at Bella.

"Jane," Carlisle says interrupting her observation of me, "I don't believe that any of my children are interested in joining you at the present."

"Never," remarks Alice. Jasper hovers protectively over her. His body language and facial expression clearly communicating that he will stay with Alice no matter what.

"Not a chance," Bella says. Edward has already made his view on the matter quite clear. He will not be going anywhere without Bella and he will not be joining the Volturi under any circumstances.

"What a pity," she says, clearly unsurprised by the answer. If she never expected them to go, why did she come here? This information is buried deep in the depths of her mind, away from the prying minds of me and Edward. "And what about you," Jane asks me, "would you like the honor of joining the Volturi guard? We have heard whispers about you, Cassandra LaFayette. These whispers have told us that you are quite the vampire. Surely, you are too talented to stay here." In her mind, I see a young vampire offering information in exchange for his life. He told the brothers all he knew of me before they killed him anyway. I remember him from almost 3 years back. We met him in the woods of Canada while we were hunting. He was timid and awkward, very uncharacteristic for a vampire. He was able to tell that I was powerful, possibly more so than anyone else in my family, but he was unable to tell the guard exactly what it was that I could do.

_That's good, _Edward thinks, _that gives you the upper hand. _

"I'm sorry, Jane. You might be right about one thing: I might be more powerful than the rest of them. All the more reason I need to stay with them. I chose to stay with my family."

"Very well. But what is it exactly that makes you more powerful than the rest of them?"

"That's for me to know, and you to hope you'll never have to find out." I hear a few snickers behind me from Emmett and a few of the wolves. Carlisle steps to my side.

"We're going to have to ask you to leave, Jane," he says sternly, putting an arm over my shoulder. Jane glances around, mentally calculating her chances of getting out alive if she insists on taking me with her so that the brothers can interrogate me. Edward takes a threatening step forward and the rest of my family follows his lead. Jane hisses quietly and continues to stare at me as she back away slowly. Everyone remains tense as she retreats.

"She's gone," Edward says when he can no longer hear her thoughts. I feel her aura moving quickly away before disappears outside the range of my powers. Carlisle hugs me to his side.

"That's my girl," he says, "You're right, it's better that they don't know exactly what you can do. If she had know about your powers before she came, she would have brought back up."

"You may have just saved your own life there, Cass. They won't dare kill you if they know you're talented, and the mystery of your talent is going to drive them crazy."

"That's what I was counting on," I reply, hiding my thoughts with Bella's shield. Edward doesn't need to know this, nobody does; not yet. I hide my idea deep in the back of my mind. Edward looks at me suspiciously. I have not made any decisions, so all this goes unnoticed by Alice. She is distracted by something else.

"How did I not see her coming?"

"Aro suggested that the guard find out about Cassie, but he didn't order Jane to come. She decided to come here on her own. She was smart about it, too," Edward explains. He must have read it in her mind while I was still figuring out what the hell was going on.

"I think that's enough practicing for today," says Carlisle, he addresses the wolves next. "You are all welcome to come back to our home with us. I'm sure Jake would like that; we all would."

"Sam says that would be very welcome," Edward pauses for a second to look at Jake who nods toward Carlisle, urging Edward to tell Carlisle whatever he is thinking. "Jake wants to add that they have nowhere else to go anyway."

Emmett chuckles before quickly calming himself as the wolves begin to stare.

"Like I said," Carlisle adds, "you are very welcome at our home anytime."

**A/N: I know it's been a long time since I updated and I sorry to say that it might be a bit longer between updates throughout the summer (covers her face and prepares for the blow). The thing is, I go away for the summer and only get internet access every once in awhile. I promise to keep writing and update every change I get.**


	13. Home Base

**I know, I haven't updated in forever. We don't have internet at my summer house so the only time that I can update is when we come home every few weeks. Thanks to everyone for sticking with me. FYI, my other story, Windchime Voice is up, though I'm not sure that I like it so far. **

We get home as the morning breaks and the sun illuminates the house beautifully. Jake takes the wolves out to the back yard so they can all phase and change while the vampires head inside. I follow my family into the living room where we wait for our company. Seth comes in first, Jake is behind him. Jake's arm is thrown over Brendan's shoulder. Brendan's nose wiggles at the scent, but other than that, he doesn't seem too uncomfortable about being in a house full of vampires. The rest follow in after. 18 werewolves and 10 vampires and there is still plenty of room in the living room.

I sit next to Nessie on one of the chairs. Jake drags Brendan over to us. Now, Brendan is starting to look uncomfortable. It must be unnerving to find out that these people that he has known since the beginning of the school year are not the people he thought they were. He has been submerged headfirst into the world of the living (or at least undead) myths. Not to mention, he has been through a lot tonight.

"There's my girls," Jake says releasing Brendan and kissing Nessie on the top of the head. "I'm going to grab some food for the guys and Leah. Then we can introduce Cassie to everyone. By the way, Cass, that was one gutsy move with that bloodsucker earlier. I thought she was going to rip your throat out right then and there."

"Thanks, Jake. But that might actually end up working to my advantage in the near future. Right, Alice?" I feel the presence of her aura over my shoulder. She is speaking quietly to Jasper, but turns when I address her. I lean my head back on the chair and look up at her standing behind it. Her face is worried.

"I don't know, Cassie. We'll talk about this later, okay?" She brushes her fingers through my hair as she speaks and then walks back to Jasper. He takes her hand in his and together they walk outside. Jake pats my shoulder and heads towards the kitchen. Platters of food provided by Esme begin circulating the room. Brendan stands awkwardly in front of Nessie and me when Jake leaves. He rocks back and forth on his feet a few times before he takes a deep breath and sits on the ottoman in front of us. He looks from my eyes to Nessie's, waiting for us to say something first.

"Hey," Nessie says. A girl of many words.

"We owe you an explanation, although I don't think it's really necessary at this point. Obviously, we are vampires," I say.

"Technically, I am a half breed. I am half vampire, half human. My mom had me while she was still human and was turned into a vampire afterwards. I'm the only unique case like that here, so don't worry about it," says Nessie.

"I don't know what else to tell you. What do you want to know?" I ask Brendan who looks right into my eyes again. His expression may be wary, but his eyes reveal that no matter what we are, he trusts us.

"I want to know more about you both. You are my friends and for awhile I thought I knew you. Now I realize that what I thought I knew might have been just an assumption. So now I want to know the real story." Brendan's request is reasonable.

"My name is Cassandra LaFayette," Brendan's eyes widen with recognition, "Judging by your reaction, I guess you know that story. I was not kidnapped by some Olympic terrorist; I was attacked and pretty much killed by a vampire. The Cullens took me in, they are my family now."

"Wow. I didn't see that coming. You know, I was watching TV with Lauren last week and they were showing some thing on the Olympics. They showed a picture of you," his face is puzzled, "I guess I can see the resemblance now that I know it's there, but I never would have guessed then."

"When we become vampires, our appearance changes. Our best features are highlighted and any imperfections are erased and corrected. I don't mean to sound vain, but being beautiful is part of being a vampire. You probably know a bit about vampires in general; that's just the way it is."

I feel Edward and Jacob behind me. Jake takes a seat on the arm of the chair that Nessie and I are sharing. He kisses the top of her head again and takes her hand. Edward stands behind the chair.

"Hey, Dad," Nessie says. Brendan's jaw drops. He knew that Nessie's father was a vampire, but he didn't expect it to be Edward. For so long now he has thought that Edward was her biological brother, now he finds out that it is really her father. W should have warned him about that one.

"Hey, kids," says Edward, he takes a deep breath, "we're going to discuss strategy in a minute. As soon as Jasper and Carlisle are ready. Anything else we can get for the pack, Jake?"

Jake hesitates, his face furrowed in concentration, then he sighs, "I was going to make a joke and tell you to bring us something outrageous but I couldn't think of anything that you couldn't get us. No thanks, we're all good, Edward."

Jasper and Sam are standing together on the couch in the center of the living room. "Alright everyone. Listen up!" Everyone quiets down immediately.

"Alice," Jasper calls. She sits down on the couch next to him. "Now," Jasper addresses the rest of us, "we're going to come up with a rough plan. Everyone needs to know what we are up against before we can make any decisions. My family and I are going to tell you about as many of the members of the Volturi as we can so we can decide how to handle them."

"First," says Carlisle, "we have the three brothers. Marcus, Caius, and Aro. Aro's power might not be much of a problem in battle. He can hear thoughts but only through physical contact. But if he does manage to get physical contact, he can read every thought you have ever had. This could be potentially problematic because our plans could be revealed. Still, I don't think that that will be much of a problem at that point.

"Marcus has a feel for relationships. His power is not very threatening to a family as close as ours. Similarly, Chelsea can sense and break relationships. She has the power to make people change sides and become loyal to them. I expect she is working overtime under the new regime. Again, our family is far too close to be broken up by her power."

"Some that we do need to worry a bit more about," says Edward, "are the twins, Jane and Alec. They are a dangerous pair. Bella can protect us against their powers, but they have already seen that in action. You can bet that they will try to fins a way to get to Bella first, so of course our main priority will be to protect Bella so that she can protect us. Without her shield, we are doomed. Fortunately for us, we have a backup plan. Everyone, this is our youngest and possibly most talented sister, Cassie." He gestures in my direction and I stand and smile slightly at the crowd around me.

"Cassie, you will need to be on backup for Bella. If for whatever reason, Bella is unable to shield us, we are counting on you to do it." He knows from my thoughts that I feel like an outsider here. How much of the battle will I actually live to witness? "Don't be so quick to count yourself out, Cass. We need more optimism than that." I take my seat again and stare at Edward.

"You know you won't need me, Edward. If everything goes according to Alice's vision, Bella will always be able to shield you. Because if I was shielding you for the battle, we would lose. But seeing as Alice has seen our side surviving, I doubt that I will be needed for protection."

"Can't you enhance the powers that you mirror? Isn't that exactly what we need? No offense to Bella, but wouldn't we be better protected if you were shielding us?" Sam asks me.

"Any change in the outcome since we last talked, Alice?" I ask my sister. Her face is devastated as she shakes her head.

"No Sam, if the outcome that Alice saw comes true, then I will be the only one to die during this battle and our side will win. We don't know exactly when or how it will happen, but you really can't rely on me for protection because at some point, I won't be around to supply it." Saying that out loud gave it an entirely mew truth in my mind. I was too young to die the first time, and I'm still only 21. My life as eternally dead is coming to an end far too soon. Nessie's arm snakes around my waist and Jake's hand rests on my shoulder. I lean into Nessie next to me, accepting their comfort.

Everyone is looking at me. "I'll cause as much chaos for them as I can. Right up until the end. I promise."

"If there was any other way, Cassie, you know that we would do it."

"I know, Carlisle, and thank you. It's better this way, knowing the alternative. So, Edward, what can these twins do exactly?" I want to take the attention off me. Edward takes a deep breath before continuing.

"Jane can inflict pain in a most peculiar way. She creates the illusion of pain inside the mind. We saw that in the field tonight. Remember when Cassie was fighting Jasper. She picked up Jane's power at random and used it against him. Jane can do nothing without her power.

"Alec's power is different. He can incapacitate in the worst way. He can cut off all senses of his enemy. He hakes them unable to see, hear, feel. He cuts off all special talents. Basically, he makes you lifeless and unable to fight back so they can kill without a fight." Everyone's mood is ominous; everyone but me. I laugh, everyone looks at me. I look at Edward.

"I think we found our in."

**I wish I had more for you, but this will have to do for now. I'll be home again next week so I'll try to update then. Thanks again to everyone! **


	14. No Way!

**A/N: Alright, time to get to know our characters a bit better, don't you think? Special thanks to my best friend, Jill (check her out JasperAndJill), her fantastic brother, Brendan, and my own darling sister, Lauren for letting me put them into my story. These characters posses their names and bits of their personalities. I have altered other aspects of their personalities and personal lives to fit in with the story. **

"Okay, stay calm. This is just another day at school. Nothing to be nervous about. Keep your cool today, Brendan. We can't afford for anything to happen. The last thing we want is to arouse suspicion." I'm not sure if I am trying to calm him or me at the moment.

"Suspicion, hmm. Like the emotion that will overcome the entire student body when you just stop coming to school one day." Hearing that I wasn't going to make it out of the battle was a major wake up call for Brendan. When the pack told him that it was urgent that he get himself together after he phased for the first time, he was sort of put out. He was angry at the lack of sympathy from the pack, so he resented the coming battle. He wasn't thinking realistically until it came out that that is going to be the end of me. Now he is as nervous as the rest of us.

Nessie and I leave Brendan and walk into homeroom. I tap into his mind so I can be on guard. Upstairs, Edward has done the same thing. He knows better than I do the danger of a new werewolf. He knows that they all have a short fuse for the first few weeks. Things that are seemingly insignificant can set them off. Without practice and experience, he will transform if his temper is pushed too far.

I keep an eye on him through first period English and when the bell rings, Nessie and I race off to Algebra. Brendan is already there when we arrive. He is staring incredulously at Jill who is standing just inside the doorway, staring right back.

"You!" he breaths, pointing at her. Jill looks around at Nessie and me. Brendan's nose is wrinkled and he continues to point and gape at Jill.

He is seeing her in a new way for the first time. Looking at her now, I see it too. The subtle glow of her pale skin, the perfection of her features that I previously underestimated. Her beauty is not ordinary as I thought. It took Brendan's new sense of smell for us to realize it, but she is something more than the human we mistook her for.

"It looks like we all need to talk," I say calmly. Edward already knows what is going on and is relaying it to Bella and Alice two floors below us. "My family would like you both to sit with us at lunch today, if you don't mind." I picked the invitation out of Bella's head seconds ago. The rest of the class begins filing into the classroom. I take my seat and the other mythical beings take my hint and do the same.

We all sit through class absorbed in our own thoughts. My thoughts taking in the thoughts of everyone else. I gather that Jill already knew about my family and our secret. She is a half vampire like Nessie, that is why we didn't recognize her right away. She was afraid to talk to us about it. She has never seen a family like ours and it intimidated her. She is confused about Brendan and how he suddenly knew her secret. He is wondering how he didn't know about all these sentient creatures before. Nessie is dumbfounded by the discovery of another creature like her. The rest of my siblings have been informed of our meeting during lunch and they are eager to learn more about Jill.

_We should have realized… _

_I know, Edward. We should have paid closer attention._

_You're right, Cassie, we were too afraid of our secret getting found out that we were oblivious to what was right around us. I've searched through the rest of the school, just in case. The rest are all humans. _

_Good to know. At lunch we'll find out her story. Maybe she is in danger of the Volturi. Or maybe she can help us against them. _

_We're soon to find out. Heads up, Ms. Conley is asking you a question. _

"The square root of 15," I say in answer to the question that I didn't hear her ask, picking the answer out of her head; not missing a beat.

"Perfect," she says, unsurprised that I got the answer exactly right. The end of the period approaches and I stack my books into a neat pile and return my pens to their place in my purse. In my old life, my friends used to make fun of me for being such a perfectionist. I feel a pang of longing for my old life. I miss my mom and my old friends. I miss my best friend, Chase. For a moment I wish he had come South to see me on my birthday like he wanted to. I wish I hadn't stopped him. I wish that he had been with me that night. But no, I don't really wish any of these things. He was my best friend; I wouldn't want this life for him. Hell, I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy. I am glad that everything happened the way it did. I only wish my mom hadn't had to die.

The bell rings loudly and interrupts my thoughts. I stop Nessie, Jill, and Brendan just outside the door. "So we'll see you both at lunch. We have a lot to discuss." With that, I turn and walk toward Spanish class. I feel Jill give an involuntary shudder behind me in response to my tone. We are in the middle of a dangerous situation. The time for being nice is past.

Nessie and I sit through Spanish class thinking about Jill. We are both anticipating lunch when all our questions will be answered. The period seems to last forever before the bell finally rings and we rush out of the room to the cafeteria. Edward and Jasper are already seated at their usual table. We make vague excuses to our friends for ourselves as well as Jill and Brendan and join our family. Neither Brendan nor Jill have arrived yet when we take our seats. Brendan walks into the cafeteria accompanied by Emmett and Bella. Even from the door I can see he is sweating a little; not from his new extreme temperature, but from nerves.

Even though he seems to be adjusting well to his new life, I can tell that every new step in this direction freaks him out a bit. He had to adjust faster than any of the other wolves. He thought he knew Jill better than he thought he knew us. All that considered, he is doing okay. To his credit, Brendan handles everything extremely well; it is only his thoughts that give him away. What he doesn't know is that Jake and Sam have been sitting in the woods outside all morning. They will stay there until the end of the day unless Nessie calls them in.

Rose and Alice take their seats with us. Rose pushes one of the trays of food that Edward and Jasper got us further away from her. I pull the tray in front of Brendan. Someone should eat it. Edward's head turns toward the door and I know that Jill has finally arrived. She takes a seat between me and Nessie.

"Hey Jill," I say; the happy smile back again. My family follows my lead.

"Hi," she says, "so…"

"Jill," says Jasper calmly, "we need to talk to you. Obviously you know our secret. You know that we are vampires-"

"WHAT?" Her wide eyes rest on each of our faces. After a few seconds she giggles. "Sorry, I couldn't resist. Yes Jasper, I've always known." I laugh too. She has a way with lightening the mood. She is perfectly at ease with us.

"Well, we need to know a bit more about you." Jasper continues.

"What do you want to know?" She asks boldly.

"Are there more of you?"

"No," she says, "I'm alone now. I was born in Italy 12 years ago. My mother died giving birth to me. My father worked as a guard in Voltera. He had never heard of anything like me before. He hid me for 7 years. In that time, he rose through the ranks of the Guard. He had a special power. He was able to lie in his thoughts. You know of Aro, I have no doubt. My father was able to hide all of his thoughts that had anything to do with me when he was in Aro's presence.

"Five years ago, something changed. My father took me to see Aro and he told him my story. He told him what I could do. The brothers decided that they could use someone like me. They had only recently discovered that people like me existed. I was able to walk among the humans without drawing attention. I was able tell the brothers secrets.

"It was a year later that they started using me for things that I didn't like. Vampires would come to them to ask for favors or mercy. The guard would capture vampire who dared to enter Voltera. They brought them all to Aro, who brought them all to me. They used me. I had no choice. I didn't like what they made me do; I didn't like what they did with the information that I gave them. My father warned me that getting on the wrong side of the brothers was dangerous, but I couldn't take it anymore, so I left.

"I traveled across the United States for a year and trained myself to eat human food. Finally, I settled here. The administration here doesn't ask many questions. And if they do, I lie."

"What exactly did they make you do in Italy?" Jasper asks gently.

"I have a gift," she says, "I'm able to see someone's most desperate desire. I see the thing that means the most to them in the world, whether it's just wanting it or wanting to keep it."

"I don't understand," says Nessie.

"Nessie what you want more than anything is for Jacob Black to be a part of your life forever." Nessie nods. Jill turns to Jasper. "Jasper wants to be with Alice, no matter what that means. He wants to be strong and please her and make her happy."

"But if Aro can read every thought that someone has ever had, then why would he need you?" Jasper makes a good point.

"I once asked his that same question. He told me that when he reads someone's thoughts different things pop up that are important to them. It is not enough to know people that they love, it takes knowing the single most important thing in their lives to control them. It's not always obvious through their thoughts and actions. You can threaten their lives or everything they own, but unless you hit it just right, you don't own them." Just like that I know where this is going, and I don't like it.

"He made you tell him what it was: the person's desire. He used that against them. Denied them of it. Didn't he?" I ask. Jill nods.

"Desire is a complex thing. It really defines the person. Someone's desire is also their greatest weakness; losing it, their biggest fear. It is the key to control."

____________________________________________________________________________________

"It's going to be sunny today. Looks like were ditching school." announces Alice at 5am the next morning.

"Really?" asks Jill curiously from the couch.

"Well we really can't go in on a sunny day. You can go if you want, or you can hang out here with the rest of us." Jasper explains.

"I have to call the school to excuse my kids, Jill. I can excuse you, too, if you want to stay." Carlisle says. He will tell the school that we are taking our good friend hiking with us on this sunny day. The school would never question Dr. Cullen.

"Could you excuse Brendan, too, Carlisle?" asks Jake, "I think he should spend as much time here as possible and a sunny day with the vampires might be good for him."

"If you think so, Jake," Carlisle goes up to his study to make the call.

"I think we should do some more training today," Jasper says, "We still haven't seen what Jill and Nessie can do. We can work out a better game plan.

When we told Jill about the Volturi and their new regime, she did not object to our plans, but was reluctant to take part. She make us promise that we would not harm her father, Felix. Edward was against her terms, but eventually agreed to them. The more vampires we have on our side, the better.

Carlisle, Jasper and Edward have been planning and scheming up in Carlisle's study for days. There are some things that they just don't want to discuss in front of the rest of us. Every time the three of them go upstairs, I mirror Edward. I know what is going on. They have been calculating our chances, and their results aren't good. Alice's visions haven't changed much. She is beginning to see shadows of Nessie and Jill because they are a part of her. Even though Jill will be fighting with us, the odds are still against us. Everything will have to go our way if Alice's vision is to come true. That would be the best we could hope for. Carlisle, Jasper and Edward are not sure that everything will go smoothly. There will be variables that we can not predict. We will be faced with more than we are prepared for. The question is… when?

Nessie and Jill turn out to be decent fighters. They are both quick and strong. If we were fighting newborns, they would do well. The Volturi are a different story, but if we pair each of them with a wolf for the battle, they will be able to hold their own. We put this theory into practice by teaming Nessie and Jake against Jasper. They work well together and bring him down relatively easily. We pair Jill with Brendan. They have a fierce brother/sister relationship ****. They work extremely well together.

We work on some other pairings that Carlisle, Jasper and Edward worked out in Carlisle's study. We want to make the most efficient and strongest pairings possible. We experiment with Alice and Edward, Emmett and Edward, Jasper and Nessie, Bella and Emmett, Bella and me, Edward and me, Alice and me.

"Well, we know one thing," Edward says as we scramble the pairings again, "Cassie can work just as well alone as she can with anyone. She can work with anyone because her power can be compatible with everyone." I think about that for a moment. When the Volturi army arrives, I will have an unbelievable arsenal. We know that with Alec's power, we will have an advantage right away. What we don't know is what new people have brought to them. What new powers have they acquired? Worst case scenario, they get a shield of some sort that will stop me from throwing their powers right back at them.

"I have an idea," says Jasper, "Cassie and Jill against Emmett and Edward." This is a fair match. Jill is a good fighter. I have power and nobody can catch me.

Jill high-fives me as we walk out into the field. We stand before Edward and Emmett. I mirror Edward, gaining full access to their minds. I contemplate mirroring Bella to keep Edward out.

_Play fair, Cassie. Block me out only if you start losing too badly. You need the practice. _

He's right: I do need the practice. Emmett and Edward start moving. Jill and I follow their lead. Emmett fakes a snatch at Jill but I see his real intention in his head and backflip as his hands clutch at the air where my body was seconds ago. A second later I am in the spot where he just vacated and Edward is circling Jill. She knows all about Edward's mind reading so she stops thinking things through before she acts. She does simply the first thing that comes to mind. I mingle myself into their fight and take on Edward with her. My thoughts are so preoccupied with Edward that I don't notice that Emmett has joined the fight until he tackles me. Adrenaline overpowers reason as I fight to free myself from his grasp. His plan is a simple one: to keep me pinned as long as he can. Like I did with Jasper, I reach out to different powers art random. Shielding myself with Bella's does nothing to make him stop wrestling me on the ground. I take Jasper's power and instill fear beyond any that Jasper has even unleashed upon him. Emmett scrambles to his feet and looks around at Rose. I hadn't noticed that I had also mirrored Jill. The fear that I put in his mind was fear for Rosalie. Jasper and Jill is an effective combination.

Jill is making no progress with Edward, so I try the same thing again. Hearing my plan in my head does not make the fear of losing Bella and Nessie any less. He keeps his cool, though and his fear turns into fury. Our game increases in speed until we are all a blur. Jill fights harder than the rest of us because she is not quite as fast.

A gasp from the corner of the house causes us all to freeze. My entire family was so absorbed in the fight that we all failed to hear Lauren coming into the back yard. Her jaw is dropped in shock. Her brown eyes are frightened and a large stack of books falls from her hands. She begins to back up slowly. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Brendan slink into the shadows. Jill and I stay put as Nessie takes a small step in her direction. I know from her thoughts that Lauren definitely saw Jill and me fighting with Edward and Emmett, so I think it is best if we stay still. I notice that Brendan is back, wearing a pair of dark blue running shorts. He slowly walks toward Lauren who stops trying to back away. Her mouth closes and she gulps as she looks away from Jill and me and fixes her eyes on Brendan. I step backward and Jill, Edward and Emmett do the same. It is not until we are out of the sunlight that we all look around at each other. We have done quite a bit of damage.

Brendan inches toward Lauren. Nessie stops, not wanting her to feel ambushed. Once he reaches her, he whispers in her ear.

"Let me explain all this. I know you're scared but I need you to trust me. I'm your best friend, let me tell you the truth." Lauren nods shyly. "Do you mind if Nessie comes, too? She can explain better than I can." She hesitates a moment before nodding again. Brendan takes her out to the front yard and Nessie follows. They take her all the way to the end of the driveway so that she can run if she wants to. This is still in my range of hearing both voices and thoughts. Lauren has not connected Brendan with the wolf she saw at the edge of the woods. She knows that he is in on the secret, but doesn't know how much.

I listen as they explain everything. I relay Lauren's reactions to Jill. I listen to Carlisle worrying about what to do next. I think what the hell, she is trustworthy and the Volturi are already coming for us. Why not let her in on the secret. She has felt hurt lately because we have all been neglecting her. It is time to put her mind at ease.

After about an hour, they have told her all she needs to know. They have answered all her questions. Although she understands now, she has not decided what to do with this new information. She doesn't know if she should be afraid of us or trust us. She thinks back to her last few months with Nessie and me, the last few years with Jill, and her lifetime of knowing Brendan. I sigh with relief as she decides to trust us.

We all go back into the house and Lauren gets to know who we really are. We each tell our own story. Once she adjusts to us, things are better, more comfortable. We all hang out, all myths and differences forgotten.

The hours pass quickly. Esme lays out a spread for the wolves and Lauren. Lauren helps herself first before the wolves devour the rest. The mood in the room is surprisingly cheerful and relaxed.

The sound reaches the ears of the full vampires first. My family reacts in mere seconds. Before she knows it, Lauren is being ushered into the corner of the room. Nessie and Jill are pushed back with her. Most of the wolves disappear just inside the dining room or the kitchen. The ones that remain take a stance in front of Lauren, Nessie and Jill. I stand with my family. They have formed a natural formation. I'm hovering awkwardly in the middle, unsure of where to go. Why didn't someone tell me about this?

"Come here, Cassie," says Edward, pulling me forward between him and Jasper. He has placed my directly in front of Esme, in the center of the front line. Carlisle stands facing us, waiting for us to be ready before he opens the door and lets the vampires in.

**Nice for her to finally find her place, isn't it? I hope I put enough emphasis on the way her siblings regard her. **


	15. Last Hope

**A/N: It is the chapter you have all been waiting for (even if you didn't know it). I haven't mentioned in awhile that the Twilight Saga and all it's characters belong to Stephenie Meyer, who in my opinion, brought sexy back in the form of Edward Cullen. So really Justin Timberlake didn't do a thing.**

**You have no idea how long I have been waiting to write this chapter! I hope you have as good a time reading it as I did writing it. **

We only too conscious of Lauren's scent that has penetrated the room as the sweet scent of the vampires drifts in with their owners. Our group drew together slightly. We stay in our places as short introductions are made. Zafrina, Kachiri, and Senna gaze curiously at us all.

"I thought you and your family were vegetarians, Carlisle," says Kachiri, eyes locked on Lauren in the corner.

"We are, Kachiri. This is Lauren. She is a friend of ours."

"We need to talk, Carlisle." Senna says, getting right to the point.

"Oh, Carlisle," Zafrina dry sobs suddenly onto his shoulder, "it was awful."

"Please," Carlisle says, "Please tell us what happened."

"It's the Volturi, they came for us. We got a head start. It was so frightening. We saw the army. There must have been close to 50 of them. Their army is growing rapidly." Zafrina explained.

"And you can bet that they're all powerful, too. They would have had to be if they were allowed to join the army. Otherwise they would have been destroyed," says Jasper grimly.

So this is it: our first look at what we are up against. I can tell from the faces around us that our hopes are dying. The army is growing and gaining strength. We are outnumbered. Our powers might not hold a candle to what they can do. Our chances are a lot less than they used to be.

There is no telling how effective my power will be against all those other powerful vampires. With our luck they will have someone who is able to deflect me or perhaps has the same talent as me.

Suddenly, I am terrified. We don't have a chance. It seems that now, it is not only my life in danger but those of everyone around me.

"Why didn't Alice see that?" Rose speaks the question that is on my mind. Alice shakes her head sadly, not knowing the answer.

"My guess is that they have someone who is able to mess with Alice's visions. Perhaps they can shield them in some way that makes them invisible to Alice. Either that or they have found a wolf pack of their own; which is unlikely." Jasper's theory makes a lot of sense. Alice hasn't seen anything in awhile. Whoever is causing this is new to the Volturi.

Lauren decides to stay the night with us and the wolves. Now, she is the one comforting us. Zafrina's news was a big blow. We really thought we had a chance. Carlisle paces the living room, lost in thought, for hours on end. I know how he is feeling. I know he wouldn't save himself if he could; but now there is no way for him to save his family.

"We're still going to fight, Carlisle," I say encouragingly, "We aren't going to give up." My words are nothing more than encouragement. I know as well as they do that there is virtually no chance for us. We have no choice but to fight. We certainly aren't going to join the army and leave the rest of our family to die. I think Carlisle may be thinking along different lines.

"You kids could still save yourselves," he says, his voice helpless, "If you hand yourselves over and join them, you can live."

"Carlisle-" Edward begins.

"Edward, listen. Aro wants nothing more than to have you and your wife and your brother and sisters. This is what I want you to do," says Carlisle, picking up the telephone, "You, Bella, Nessie, Alice, Jasper, Cassie, and Zafrina are getting on the next plane to Italy. I want you to go to Voltera and turn yourselves in. I want you to save your family, Edward." Edward acts before Carlisle can finish talking. He takes the phone and hangs up on the airline. He looks into Carlisle's face. We can all see the agony that this situation and this decision is causing him.

"You know that we would, nor could ever do that, Carlisle. We will all stand with our family until the very end. You can't ask us to sit back and watch you die. If they want you, they are going to have to take us, too."

Now _that_ is family loyalty. I agree wholeheartedly with Edward. What good is living without our family. I understand exactly what Carlisle is doing: he is sacrificing himself and my mother and brother and sister to save the rest of us. He is putting the need of the family as a whole above the needs of a few members. He is of the same mindset as he was when I first came here and he saw me as a potential threat to his family.

The end is nearing. I still thirst to prove myself to Carlisle, my father. I feel like the entire time I have been here has been unpleasant to Carlisle. He has not stopped worrying about me since I arrived. I want to be the daughter that he would have eagerly handpicked, like Rosalie. I feel like even though I am part of this family, he still doesn't think of me that way, even after all this time. He still thinks of me as the little girl that he has to keep an eye on or she'll have a fit and destroy anything in her path. There has to be something I can do to prove that I am truly a part of this family. There has to be some way I can help them.

Bella has yet to let go of Edward's hand since the Amazon coven arrived. Jill is hiding upstairs. She is utterly overwhelmed with all of the desires in the room. Bella's shield can not block her power, so I have no way to help her. Lauren and Brendan are with her for moral support. Alice and Jasper are on the back porch. I try not to think about where Rosalie and Emmett are doing right now. Jake is holding Nessie in his arms on the couch. Her head is nestled into his shoulder. Carlisle looks away form Edward and pulls Esme into him. She wraps her arms around his waist and lays her head against his chest.

"Edward," Carlisle's voice is pleading, "if we are all lost, there will be no one to preserve our lifestyle-"

"But if any of us are saved, there will be no point in living without the rest, Dad." I interject. Carlisle looks at me, his eyes deep with emotion. I called him dad. That meant a great deal to him. He is the only father I have ever known, even if he doesn't think of me as a daughter-figure.

"She's right, it's all or none for us, Carlisle." Edward walks away, pulling Bella with him. This stubborn act makes Carlisle grin just a little bit. He untangles one of his arms from Esme and hugs me. The possibility of his family being eliminated is killing Carlisle. If only there was something that could be done.

"We should warn Tanya," Carlisle says abruptly. He squeezes me once more and lets me go. He keeps his hold on Esme as he picks up the phone and dials Denali. He explains the situation to Tanya in record time. They arrange that their coven will come and stay here for awhile. Undoubtedly, when the Volturi finish with us, they will pay a visit to Alaska.

"Let's go hunting," Edward suggests. Alice and Jasper come into the living room, Emmett and Rose emerge from the garage, and Carlisle relaxes a little.

"I'm going to stay here." I announce. They understand that I don't want to be a 9th wheel on this one.

"We're going to stay, too," Alice says. Jake and Nessie want to stay, too. The rest of the family leaves through the back door. Alice and Jasper cuddle up on the sofa. Jake and Nessie go out into the back yard.

I head upstairs to see Jill, Brendan and Lauren. I find them in Alice and Jasper's room. They look up at me when I come in. I sigh and take a seat next to Jill. I fall back on to the bed and close my eyes. I hear Jill take a deep breath.

"It's over, isn't it?"

"For us it is. You could go back, Jill. You could go back to Italy and be safe." I open my eyes and look at her. I can see her considering this path.

"Can I ask you something?" I ask Jill. She nods. "You can see what everyone wants and what means the most to them. What is it that you desire?"

"My desire is exactly the same as yours, Cassie. Acceptance. We want to feel like we belong. We don't want people to second guess our intentions. We want to be trusted and gain the acceptance that come with that trust." Wow. She really gets me. "And we both still long for our old lives, even though we know that they are out of our reach."

"But Jill, that's exactly what I was saying. For me, the past is past. I can never go back to being human. I can't bring my mom back to life. My chance at the Olympics is past. No matter how much I want all that, it can never happen, because I am a vampire now. Cassandra LaFayette died five years ago, I can never be her again. But you aren't limited in the ways that I am. You are exactly the same person that you have always been. You can go and get your old life back if you really want it. You can see your father again. You can have your life back; you can live."

"I would be right back where I started. I would be helping them to torture innocent people. I would be their robot again. That is what I ran away from. I can't live with the guilt that it causes me. If I have to die so that I don't cause any more of their victims pain: I will. That would be better than living in a world of hatred and hurt."

I get what she is saying. I understand so completely that I can't argue. I can't tell her that she has to go back and save herself. She has taken our side and she doesn't want to go back.

"So that's it?" whispers Brendan, "There's nothing we can do?" His voice is worried. He looks away form me and to Jill and Lauren in turn. He is worried about their safety.

"If only their army wasn't so strong. There has to be a way," says Lauren, deep in thought, "There has to be some way to weaken them. If they were weakened before they came to get you, you would have a better chance of beating them." Lauren looks up suddenly, she has found some resolve. "There has to be people within their guard, like Jill's dad, that know that this is wrong. If you could get them to change sides-"

"We would have hope." I finish her thought. Lauren is absolutely right. That is our only chance. There has to be moral vampires within the guard. If they revolted against the brothers, we could actually win this. They would take them down from the inside. The problem is: they are afraid. That is why the ones, such as Felix, haven't taken action before. There is also the matter of Chelsea, using her power to tie them together. She could change that. She could make them loyal to Carlisle and our cause. If we had the army on our side when it came time to fight…

…I could do it. I could do what Chelsea could do. I could use my powers to make them all change sides. If I could break them down from the inside, my family would have a chance. I have the ability to save them. To take a chance for the safety of my family. This is what Carlisle would do if he had my gift. This is what I am going to do.

This is it. This is our only chance. I am going to Italy. I am going to offset the balance they have worked so hard to maintain. I am going to stir up some trouble in Voltera. I hear Alice shouting downstairs, but I ignore her.

As I reach my resolve I look at the faces around me. Brendan, the young wolf who wished with his whole heart that he would imprint on Lauren, but never did. Still, they could have a future together. Who knows?

Lauren, her face filled with concern; not for herself, but for us.

"Lauren, you are going to have to move or something. If Aro reads any of our minds, he will know that you know about our existence. Whatever you do, never talk about it with anyone. I'm really sorry that we dragged you into this."

"I like knowing and being in danger better than being kept in the dark. Besides, Brendan would probably have told me eventually."

"You're not going anywhere," Brendan says to Lauren, he turns to me, "I'll protect her."

Suddenly, the door bangs open. Alice and Jasper are there. Alice's fierce eyes are trained on me. She shakes her head slowly. I stare back, unmoving. Then sadness breaks through into her features and despair clouds her eyes. She knows that there is nothing she can do to change my mind. Jasper is obviously confused. He looks between Alice and me for an answer to his unasked question.

I turn back to my friends. Jill is eying my suspiciously, too. Lauren and Brendan, like Jasper, are looking between Alice and me. I try to return to normal conversation to avert their suspicion, but I can't seem to find the words. I stand and walk from the room. Alice follows me and Jasper stays to ask the others if they know what is going on.

Nessie and Jake are still in the backyard. They are sitting on a rope swing that Jake built a few years ago. The distress must have shown on my face because as soon as I approach them, they stand. Without a word, I hug each of them. Without thinking that this is the only goodbye I might get, I continue on my way into the woods. I can smell the scent of my family in the air. They went left to go hunting. I'm going to need to go after them a little ways to mirror Edward and Bella before I leave.

"Only one of us can go to Voltera, Alice. I am the only one who doesn't have a mate here. Besides, if I have a death sentence anyway, I might as well try to break them down from the inside before they kill me. I need to weaken them before if you want any chance of defeating them. It has to be me. They can't know what I'm doing. The only other one that can hide their thoughts is Bella, but there's no way that Edward would let her go without him, and he certainly can't come. Plus, once I get in there, I can find whoever is blocking your visions and reverse their power." I sigh.

"You know it's true, Alice." From her face, I know she does. She can see the logic in my decision, she just wishes that there was some other way. "Do me a favor?" I ask.

"Anything," she says.

"Tell them about my plan after I am gone. Wait a few days though. I don't want them to think that I betrayed them." Alice nods, the pain in her eyes breaks my heart. "More importantly, make sure that nobody comes after me." She doesn't move. This is something that she doesn't want to promise. I can hear Jill's footsteps approaching. I am running out of time. They won't talk me out of my decision.

"Please, Alice," I beg, despair leaks into my voice. Alice, my usually perky sister, hangs her head in defeat and nods slowly.

"You're leaving," Jill says. It is not a question, but an accusation.

"Jill-" I don't want to try and explain. I just want to go before I change my mind.

"I want to go with you-"

"Shhhhhh!" She knows that I am in a hurry and she knows that I don't want to be overheard. She wants to come to Italy. She wants to help me take down the Volturi. Or does she? I mirror her for just a moment. I see her desires clearly. She wants to see her father again; she wants to make her life, and his better.

"Ok, but we have to leave right now." I turn my back on my life and take a step into the woods. Almost as soon as I have taken that step I pivot and launch myself into Alice's arms. She hugs me tightly and whispers into my ear:

"Cassie, if they find out what you are doing, they'll kill you. Whatever you do, don't get caught."

**A/N: HA! Leaving you hanging again! I'm going to experiment with the next few chapters, I think. I want to get to Italy, but there are some things that need to be taken care of first.**


	16. The Dark Days

**A/N: So I am officially switching things up temporarily. This chapter will be in **_**Lauren's POV **_**because Cassie is not home anymore!!!!! **

**Lauren's POV**

"What's going on with Cassie?" Nessie asks Brendan and me as we walk into the living room, hand in hand.

"I don't really know," I answer, "she just started rambling and then Alice came in and she got up and left. Alice and Jill followed her. I don't know where they went."

"We saw them in the backyard," says Jake, "she looked really unhappy. I really hate it when she's depressed like that. It reminds me of when she first joined us." Jake shutters.

"Was it bad?" Brendan asks. Nessie takes a deep breath.

"This is something that we usually don't talk about. Cassie's dark days were a really tough time for all of us. It was almost unbearable. She wasn't in control of her powers and she was angry at the world and she was scared. Her biggest dreams were taken right out from under her. None of us blame her, but she was dangerous."

"Wow," I say, "I can't imagine her anything other than friendly and perky. It's kind of like seeing Alice depressed."

"Yeah," Jake says, "the first year was the worst. She hid up in the attic for most of that time. Carlisle almost gave up on her. I've never seen him so unsettled as long as I've known him. To this day, he doesn't trust her as much as she deserves. Part of it was Alice's visions, the other part was instinct and experience. Alice saw that if we weren't able to keep her temper in check, she would be vicious; lethal even. He wanted to protect the rest of us from her."

"I'm glad he didn't kill her when he wanted to. I think that was the worst week of my life. I've never seen my family so angry and so scared. It took every one of us to stop him from doing it. We literally had to drag him outside and get him to cool down. We knew that his intentions were honorable, but we convinced him to give her a chance. Alice and Jasper spent that week in her room or else outside her door. She trusted them more than the rest of us." Nessie explains. I grip Brendan's hand harder, he returns the pressure.

"Her distrust was because of what we were and what that meant for her. She still doesn't know how close we all came to killing her at one point or another. She doesn't know that her life as a vampire almost ended as abruptly as her human life did. We'd have to take a deep breath and tell ourselves that things would get better-"

"Reminiscing about the dark days?" Jasper asks, coming into the room.

"Yes," says Nessie, "and once again we'll thank you for saving her and defending her. If it weren't for you and Alice, she'd have been dead in the middle of the street five years ago."

"She's a good girl. I've seen a lot of newborns in my lifetime and I have learned that there are always signs that a vampire will be lethal. I'll be the first to admit that she showed those signs. Alice was her real defender. She understood how she was feeling, sort of. Alice would have been a savage if she had not developed a conscience on her own. She thought that the same would work for Cassie, and she was right. That wasn't quite enough for Carlisle, though. He will never trust her completely. He knows that when it comes time to fight, she will stand with us, but I think he feels like she could do more. This family is based and centered around sacrifice. We have all defended our family and our way of life a few times over. In Carlisle's opinion, she hasn't done that yet. I don't think he will trust her until the time comes when he sees with his own eyes that she cares enough for her family that she would willingly die for us. Carlisle cherishes loyalty. After all his years there's no question why. He has seen betrayals of all sorts.

"During his human days, Carlisle greatly respected his father. When he was turned into a vampire, he couldn't go home because he knew that his father would kill him to protect his family. I think that his father was his role model. Carlisle wants nothing more than to protect his family. During the dark days, it seemed like the only way to protect us was to destroy Cassie. He believed that to be the right course.

"But he didn't kill her, and she has not yet been given the opportunity to show him how devoted to his family she is; so the thought remains. Even now, after all these years, I think he would get rid of her if she posed a threat to us. It wouldn't be easy for him, and he probably wouldn't kill her, but he could forget her."

"When we were talking earlier," says Brendan, "Jill said that what Cassie desired more than anything else was acceptance."

"She has been accepted by all of us, what she wants is to be accepted by Carlisle," says Nessie.

I still can't believe it. I never actually thought about how vampires feel when they first become a vampire. I almost thought that they were one all along, like Nessie and Jill. I forgot that Cassie had a life before this one and I understand now that it must have been hard for her to give that all up. I can't even imagine getting what you have always dreamed of and having everything going your way, and then- POOF! All gone in the blink of an eye. One bad night and there is no going back to what you had. I know I would be incredibly angry. I guess that I never actually thought that Cassie had any weakness, even when I didn't know what she was.

"JASPER!" Alice bursts through the back door. Her eyes are wild and desperate. Jasper runs to her and pulls her distressed form into his arms. She shrugs him off but takes his hand in hers. She pulls him along to a desk against the wall. She pulls out a set of keys from the drawer of the desk and pulls him toward the garage.

"We'll be back in a few days," she shouts back to us, "don't worry."

"Wait!" Nessie shouts to their retreating forms, "are Cassie and Jill going with you?" Alice's face is distorted with pain. She doesn't answer, but continues on her way. The roar of her Porsche echoes through the garage and penetrates the silence in the living room. The tires squeal as she peels out of the driveway.

"What was that?" Brendan asks a confused Nessie. She shakes her head dazedly.

"I don't know. But whatever it was, I don't like it."

"Alice always has her reasons," Jake sooths. Nessie checks the clock hanging near the door.

"The others should be back soon," she says gazing out the glass wall facing the back of the house.

"Where do you think Cassie and Jill are?" I ask Nessie.

"Maybe they went hunting?" Jake asks. Nessie shakes her head.

"Something's not right," she says, lost in thought. She offers Jake her hand. He takes it and presses it against his cheek. After a few minutes he takes it away and turns to Brendan.

"Come with me," he tells him. Brendan doesn't need telling twice. He gives my hand a squeeze before he pulls off his shirt and throws it on the couch with Jake's and they walk outside. Brendan casts a reassuring look my way before he leaves.

"Where are they going?" I ask Nessie.

"To see if Jill and Cassie are in the woods out there. They're going to follow their scents and find them." There is nothing more to be said between us. We are both absorbed in our own thoughts. What was with Alice? Why did she react that way when we asked about Cassie and Jill? These are the questions that haunt me.

Nessie stares out the window. I can't sit still the way that she can. I get up and head into the kitchen. The Cullen's don't eat human food but the wolves eat enough for all of them. Esme keeps the cupboards stocked for them and me. I make myself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich to keep myself occupied. I eat slowly, still thinking about everything I have learned about my friends. Half an hour passes, then an hour.

"Lauren," Nessie calls, "they're back." I enter the living room just as Edward reaches the top stairs of the desk. He flies into the living room, staring right at Nessie. He is pulling the afternoon's events from her mind.

"Alice and Jasper are gone," he tells the rest of the family.

"Just for a few days," Nessie specifies.

"I'm sure she had her reasons." Edward drops to the couch, pulling Bella onto his lap.

"Tanya and her family will be here in the morning, kids," Carlisle announces, "I'm going to let Sam know." He walks out the back door with Esme and disappears into the woods. As soon as he is out of hearing range Edwards turns on Nessie and me.

"So Cassie didn't tell either of you what's going on? She didn't give you any clue as to what she was up to."

"She gave Jake and me a hug in the yard and kept walking."

"We were just talking in Jasper and Alice's room and she got all quiet and then Alice came in and Cassie, Alice, and Jill got up and left. That's the last that we saw of them until Alice came back in."

"Something's up with that. So Cassie went with Jill, huh?"

"It's not like that, Dad. Jill is on our side and you know that better than any of us. This is Cassie you're talking about. Whatever she has gone to do, she had her reasons." There is no messing with Nessie as she defends her favorite sister and best friend.

"I know," Edward sighs, "we're going to have to convince Carlisle of that, though."

"I know."

"Listen to me, girls," Bella moves onto the couch next to Edward as he leans forward and rests his elbows on his knees. He takes a deep breath before looking us both in the eye. "Cassie has made a decision; a dangerous one. The way I see it, one she didn't want me to know about. That could explain why Alice left. That means that she doesn't want us to stop her, that is certain.

"I saw Alice's face in your mind, Lauren. She was truly distraught when she came to see Cassie when you were talking. She must have had a vision about whatever Cassie is going to do. My point is: if Alice was that shaken and upset about this, Cassie is in a lot of danger. Now, Jake and Brendan have gone to find them, but if they don't, we may never see either of them again. It takes quite a lot to upset Alice like that. My guess is that she didn't like what she saw one bit."

"I wish we had been here," whispers Bella, "we could have stopped her."

"Alice didn't stop her," Rose argues, "That means something."

"It means she didn't want to be stopped," says Edward.


	17. Cassandra LaFayette

**A/N: So I'm switching back to Cassie's POV. For the remainder of this story I will be switching back and forth between different characters just so that you get to see it all play out on all sides. PAY ATTENTION to my author's notes because I have a bad habit of doing really abrupt perspective changes. Just ask Jill. **

**Cassie's POV**

I managed to stay outside of Edward's range of hearing as I snuck through the woods to mirror him. I reached my power as far as I could and mirrored both him and Bella. Neither of them noticed my presence. Nobody tries to stop me.

I run back to where I left Jill.

"Let's go," I say. I can hear her thoughts in her mind. She is trying to decide whether or not she made the right decision. She still isn't sure.

"You can stop at any time before we get there," I tell her, "but once we're in the city, there is no turning back. Just give it some serious thought. I want to take a little side trip before we go." We run past two wolves, sniffing in the grass. Sam and Leah nod at us to acknowledge our presence. Nobody tries to stop me.

When we hit town, the first thing I do is buy a baseball cap and sunglasses at a store on Main St. Then I lead Jill East; going to the place that I once knew so well. It takes less than 5 minutes for us to get to the gym. I visited this place so often when I was a human that they made me my own key.

We stay in the woods surrounding the building and carefully make our way around to the front. Jill remains quiet while I take it all in. We are nearing the front of the building when I see it: beneath the name of the training center, a 10 foot high poster of me accepting my gold medal at nationals a year before I died, my face bright with excitement as I wave to the crowd. This is the way that everyone remembers me. This is the way they define me. Nobody remembers the real me: the regular girl who loved gymnastics and Italian food. The girl that loved to hang out with her friends in the tree house behind her house on a Friday night is forgotten.

The tree house was perched between my house and the house next door. That house happened to belong to my best friend, Chase. Chase and his parents helped me and my mom build the tree house when I was 5. Chase and me sat up there for countless hours with our friends for the following years.

I used to think that I wanted my life back: my life when my dreams were coming true. Now, I know that I would trade everything that I ever had, every medal I ever won, every autograph I ever signed, every fan that knew my name, every opportunity that I was ever presented to have that life back. I miss life when it was simple.

Casually, Jill and I make our way to the front doors of the gym and into the arena. My coach, Monica, is still here. I take Jill up to the viewing platform for a few minutes.

"Come on, Kayla. Stick it! No, you're under-rotating! High knees now! Come on!" Monica shouts at her student. The girl, Kayla, is probably close to 17.

"Shove it, Monica!" she shouts as her frustration peaks. I giggle, remembering cursing Monica myself. Monica always fought back.

"Shove the attitude, Kayla. I had Cassandra LaFayette doing these tricks when she was 11. If you can't handle my coaching style, find a new coach. I'm the best and I have proved it! Cassandra would have won the Olympics if she had lived to see it. Do you know where she learned it all? Right here in this gym with me!

"Come on, Kayla, this is your last chance to qualify! You have to work with me and you know it! Now, let's try that pass again."

Kayla cuts the attitude and does as she is told. She has potential, but she is letting her head get in the way. From the viewing area I can see the tension in the tips of her fingers. I can hear her thoughts cursing Monica for working her so hard. She is wishing that she was with her boyfriend right now. Her head isn't in it.

"She's not into it," I mutter mostly to myself. Jill is enjoying watching me reminisce but she is wondering if this is the best idea. The thoughts of the woman a few feet away catches my attention. She is Kayla's mother.

"Look at her fingers," I say to Jill loud enough for Kayla's mother to hear me, "Cassandra used to tell me that you can tell how well a gymnast will do just by looking at their fingers." From her thoughts, I can tell that Kayla's mother is listening. "She's too tense and distracted. She needs to clear her head and get her eyes on the prize. Cassandra used to say that focus is everything." Kayla's mother is thinking about what I said and plans to tell her daughter. She is also wondering what I know about Cassandra. I know more than she can ever guess.

I turn my attention back to the gym. Monica is thinking about me. She is wondering about what happened to me. She is feeling the old ache of losing me. She was like a second mother to me. She was my coach from the time I was 3 years old. She watched me grow up and trained me for the Olympics. She never had a student go farther than me. The reason that she has so many clients now is because everybody knows that she was my coach. She says a prayer inside her head for me. She prays that wherever I am, I am happy and safe.

I turn to leave and see a trophy case. In the case is the only remaining evidence of who I used to be. In the case is every award that I ever won and pictures of me dating all the way back to my first gymnastics lesson. In the center are three pictures. The one on the left is the same picture that was blown up on the poster outside. The picture on the right is one of me and Monica after I qualified for the Olympic team. The picture in the center makes my still heart beat again. It is a picture of my mom and me at a banquet. It is a close up of our faces. Beneath it, the words "In Loving Memory" are scripted.

I miss my bright green eyes that so perfectly matched hers. Both sets are alive and bright with laughter in this photo. My hair is exactly the same color as my mother's. you can barely tell where my long curls stop and her short waves begin. I look so much like her, but some things are different: genes from the father I have never seen. My nose is larger and more rounded than my mother's smaller pointier one. Her eyes are rounder than mine and her lips fuller. My teeth are perfectly straight thanks to thousands of dollars of orthodontics.

"Is that your mom?" Jill asks so quietly that the humans nearby will not be able to hear. I nod, memorizing every inch of the photo. When I have every bit of it committed to memory, I turn and nearly run from the building.

Once we hit the woods, I take off. It takes less than 2 minutes to arrive at our destination. I pause at the top of the street. I walk slowly down the length of the street. I can't help but to relive my last human moments. Everyone says that human memories fade after awhile, but I know that I will remember forever the night that I stepped out of the cab onto this very spot on the sidewalk. A few human paces brought me to the door that I am looking at right now. I know every inch of that home; the very place where I grew up. The very place where my mom was killed. Someone else is living here now. They have taken down the window boxes that my mom had filled with bright colored flowers during our time here. There are other little touches that the new owner has added: the newly pained window frames, the welcome mat, and the basket of flowers on the door. I remember walking up these steps, hauling my luggage along. I remember crossing the threshold inside and what I found when I entered the kitchen.

I remember running from the house and every word that I Alice and Jasper exchanged before I lost consciousness. I remember every detain from my last few human minutes better now than in did then. Now, I know that Alice and Jasper moved their fight with my attacker into the woods so as not to attract the attention of the humans living nearby.

The sun is just beginning to set. The neighborhood is quiet. There is not a soul around except for us. I jump the fence with ease and head out into the back yard. Jill follows me to the old tree house. I can't believe that it still stands after all this time. It sits in the branches of an oak tree. The 6' by 6' floor is supported by the thickest of the branches. The narrow deck that wraps around the entire house was my mom's idea. There is a ladder that goes down from either end of the house. One into my yard and the other into the yard next door.

The inside has not changed all that much. The walls are covered with handmade posters that Chase and I made when we were really young. There are a few new additions to the place. Photos of Chase and me are hung among the posters. These must have been added after my death. There are a few flashlights and newspaper articles littering the floor. There is a layer of dirt that looks like it has been disturbed very recently. The entire place smells like the oak of the tree it is built in. There is another scent as well that I can't quite identify.

I commit this place to memory, too. My mental photo album is now burning with images of my past. But that's all it is; the past. We are on a different path now. I think the idea of dying for good is what made me want to visit the place where I lived before I died the first time. There is no running from the future.

"Can I borrow your cell phone?" I ask Jill. She is slightly surprised at my sudden transition from sentimental to serious. She hands me the little gray flip phone. I call the airport and book us seats on the next available flight to Italy. That flight doesn't leave until tomorrow morning. We still have the rest of the afternoon and the night.

I don't want to leave the tree house yet.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Jill asks. Her thoughts are concerned. She has so many questions for me. I don't want to listen to her thoughts anymore, but I can't drop Edward's mind reading or I will be in trouble when we get to Italy. I manage to put it to the back of my mind and ignore the soft whisper of thoughts that is partially contained. I pull Bella's shield around the both of us. I don't think that anyone is tracking us, but it's better to be safe.

"This was my life. I lived there," I indicate the house outside, "with my mom while I was human. The coach at the training center was my coach from the time I was 3 years old. I was a normal kid. I used to hang out right here with my friends. It looks like someone still comes up here sometimes."

"I'm sorry," she says, "I'm sorry for everything you've been through. I can't relate because I was born this way, but I'm still sorry about everything that's happened to you."

"Thanks, Jill. That means a lot to me. Nobody's ever said anything like that to me before. My brothers and sisters were sympathetic but it was a kind of 'time to get over it' sympathy."

"You were really important to these people. You were some kind of inspiration. Has your family seen any of this?" Good question.

"I don't know. Alice and Jasper brought my to Denali. I'm not sure if any of them have ever been here."

"You deserve the kind of appreciation that the people here had, and even still have for you. Even though they think you're dead, they still have such respect for you and all you accomplished." I crawl into the entrance to the tree house and dangle my feet over the edge. I hear shuffling to my right, but it doesn't concern me at the moment.

"That's over now. I can never be that girl that I was 5 years ago. It's just not possible. I will never be Cassandra LaFayette again." I hear a quick intake of breath when I say my name. it occurs to me now that the shuffling sound before might not have been an animal. I look back into the house at Jill. She definitely heard it, too. She looks toward a spot on the wall, behind which, somebody hides.

"It desires you." Jill says. I stand up carefully and follow the wrap around deck to the back of the tree house. I peer around silently. A young man stands there, supporting himself against the railing. His body is hunched over and shaking slightly. I tap into his thoughts for a second and a smile makes its way onto my face. I deliberately creak the floorboard that I am standing on. He hangs his head even lower and gulps loudly. He raises his head to look at me. As I look into his eyes, I am home again.

**A/N: How do you like exploring her past a little deeper? This chapter sparked a few ideas for me for the future of this story. I wasn't actually planning on putting the end of this chapter in the story at all because it's going to mess things up a lot but I couldn't resist. We'll see how it goes. **


	18. Chase ing the Past

**Cassie's POV**

He is not the boy of 16 that I remember from my human life. The man of almost 22 is taller and more muscular now. His dirty blonde hair that he once kept long and shaggy is now cut short and professional. He is dressed casually in distressed jeans and a flannel shirt. He is so different, yet so the same.

Chase stares at me with disbelieving eyes. My looks changed when I became a vampire. My features were perfected in every way. All of my blemishes and quirks were erased completely. He studies me like I am an unfamiliar species; which I am. After a minute or two of simply staring at each other, he sees beyond my new appearance to the old me.

________________________________________________________________________

**Chase's POV**

It couldn't be. Could it? There is now way. But I heard her say it. Has she finally come home? What happened that night?

Who is this girl? She looks about 16 but she is stunningly beautiful. Her hair is the same color that I remember Cassie's being, but it is longer and shinier. It can't be her. Her eyes are golden, not the shining green that Cassie's were. But there is something there. Some familiarity in her posture and the shape of her face.

The girl watches me as I scrutinize her. Then, her face pulls into a winning smile that could light up the world. I have seen that smile so many times, I would know it anywhere. So many times over the years I have wished that I could see that smile again just one more time. Now I know; she's back. It really is her.

I don't know how she did it; she moved too fast for me to see. Before I know what is going on, she is in my arms again. Her arms cling around my neck holding on so tightly she just about cuts off my air supply. I grip her around the middle. As I hold her I can feel the muscles in her back and arms.

I don't realize that I am crying until she pulls away from me and wipes a tear from my cheek. Her hands are cold as ice. Take her hand in mine and clutch it tight. Her golden eyes bore into mine, daring me to ask the question on the tip of my tongue.

"Cassie?" a girls voice calls from inside the tree house. I used to be the only one who called her Cassie. To everyone else, she was Cassandra. She doesn't break eye contact. She grips my hand with the one that I am holding and pulls me back toward the entrance of the tree house; a warm smile still spread across her face. She doesn't look away from me until we get to the doorway.

She stands in front of me then, facing the owner of the unfamiliar voice.

"Jill," she says. Her voice is like nothing I have ever heard before. It still has the same power and influence that it did before, but now when she speaks it sounds almost like singing. She is different, but she is still Cassie. What has she been through?

Above Cassie's head, I see Jill. She is a pretty little blonde looking about 17. She looks amused with the turn of events. She smiles brightly at me.

"Jill, this is Chase," Cassie says.

"Hey Chase, nice to meet you. Umm…," Jill looks at Cassie, "I'm going to take a walk. I think you two need a little time. I'll be back by nightfall." As we stand aside to let her pass, Cassie gives her a look that clearly communicates a warning.

Cassie takes a seat against the back wall of the tree house, exactly where she used to sit when we came up here together all those years ago. Her appearance has changed a lot since I last saw her, but in a way, she still looks 16. I hesitate before sitting beside her. She rests her head on my shoulder, just like old times.

"I can't believe I'm seeing you again." I tell her. It's true; this is unbelievable.

"It's amazing to see you, too. You've grown up a lot." There is only one way to respond to that.

"Why is it that I can't say the same for you?" She didn't want to be the one to bring it up, but we have to talk about it.

"I know you've got questions, and I am going to answer them. But first I want to know what you have been up to. What do you do now?"

"I bought your old gym. Monica and I run it. She does the coaching, and I take care of the property. We've turned out some pretty good gymnasts, but none as good as you. I never gave you enough credit before when it came to your gymnastics. I knew you were good, Olympic good, but I didn't understand that you were unbeatable. Monica gets really frustrated with some of the girls because she compares them all to you."

"I went there," she says, raising her eyes to meet mine, "before Jill and I came here, I took her there. I just had to see it again, because I spent so much time there. Thanks for the trophy case, by the way."

"Your welcome. I hope you don't mind that I took all that when they were cleaning out your mother's house. In my defense, they did say I could take what I wanted."

"I don't mind at all. So, do you have a girlfriend?"

"I have a pretty steady girlfriend. Her name's Meg. She moved here after you were gone. We've been together almost two years now."

"That's nice. I'm happy for you." We sit in silence for awhile. I just want this moment to last. I know in my heart that it can't, only she still hasn't told me why.

"So you know that I'm not really…,"she struggles for the right word, "back, right?"

"Yeah, I think I do. Cass, you need to tell me more. For five years you've been gone and…" I pause, "I think I would feel better if you told me exactly what happened to you and how you ended up here today. You have to solve this mystery that's been killing me all this time." I am practically begging now.

"Chase," she says, turning her body so that it is square with mine, "what I am about to tell you is the cold hard truth. It is also a dangerous secret. Whatever you do, tell no one of this. Nobody can know that you saw me here today. Nobody can know that I'm still… not alive, but existing."

Her words puzzle me; especially the last part about existing but not living.

"I promise to never tell anyone that I have seen you." Then I wait patiently remembering her frustration with impatience. She takes a deep breath before continuing.

"I'm only telling you this because I trust you. What I am about to tell you will be hard for you to believe, but I'm not crazy and you're not dreaming. Keep that in mind.

"Chase, I am a vampire." Wait…what? It can't be… Seriously? What kind of… Vampire!… Like Dracula?

"Not exactly like Dracula," she says casually. She eyes me curiously. That had to be a weird coincidence. There's no way that she could have known that I was thinking that. Is there?

Cassie gives me a guilty look and nods. My eyes give away my look of surprise and nervousness. Cassie backs away from me and lets me calm myself. She edges toward the door of the tree house, her face incredibly hurt. She is scared that I am afraid of her. She wants to take herself away from me in case I am.

"Don't go!" I think. Her expression changes. She smiles a small smile that doesn't quite reach her new golden eyes.

"You're not scared?" she asks.

"Cassie, you're my best friend. You always have been, and you always will be. I'll admit that I'm a little freaked out, but I still love you anyway. I just need to digest this a little. Tell me about the night you were attacked."

She tells me everything. She tells me about the vampire that killed her mom and about how it attacked her.

"I heard you screaming that night. A few of the neighbors did, too. By the time that people got to their doors and windows to check out what was going on, the street was quiet again, and you were gone. I didn't know that you were home, until I heard you scream. I went to your house to see if you were okay and found your mom, but you weren't there.

"Everyone thought that it must have been her that screamed, but I knew it was you. The next day the police called the training center to tell you about your mom and they found out that you had come home. That's when everyone panicked."

The memory haunts me. Walking into Cassie's mom's kitchen and finding her dead. I screamed and called to my parents. My dad came over and called the police. When the police came I told them that I heard Cassie's scream and not her mother's. They told me that it couldn't have been Cassie because she was training. In the morning they found out that I was right after all.

Cassie tells me all about her new family. She tells me about the trouble that they are in. She tells me the reason that she came here. She tells me that she is leaving in the morning to go to Italy. She tells me that there is slim to no chance that she will survive to come home again.

"I might actually die for real this time," she says.

"That's a really brave thing you're doing. I wouldn't expect anything else from you. I know you well enough to know that it would be no use to beg you not to go. I'd be wasting my breath telling you that I want you to stay alive and forget your new family. You're a better person than that and I know that you would go to the ends of the earth for your family."

"Thanks, Chase." For the past five years I have put up with this torture about what happened to her. I tried so hard to solve the haunting mystery. Never in a million years would I have guessed right. I lost my best friend to the vampires and now they are going to take her for good.

"Are you scared?"

"Yeah. I'm scared of failing them. I'm afraid that my plan will go terribly wrong and I won't end up helping my family after all. Afraid of dying? A little. I don't know where I'm going to go from here. My brother, Edward, doesn't think that we have souls, so we can't go to heaven. Is there an afterlife or a heaven of some kind for the undead? Who knows. The unknown freaks me out a little, but it doesn't really scare me. You know me; I'm not afraid to take risks."

This is exactly the kind of answer that I expected from her. I know that she's not going to go down without a fight, too. That is reassuring. She has always been strong muscled and strong willed. She might have a better chance than she thinks.

We talk for a few hours. Sometime within there the sun goes down and Cassie's friend Jill returns. She joins in our conversation for awhile. We talk about vampires and werewolves and family and careers and everything else that we could think of, though we hardly talk at all about the future. Cassie and I tell Jill stories about when we were kids. She likes those a lot because apparently she didn't have much of a childhood herself.

As my eyes grow heavier, I lay back on the wooden floor. Jill's head rests against the wall. The only one who isn't the least bit tired is Cassie. She sits comfortably with her ankles crossed for the entire night. Eventually I end up resting my head on her legs. It's so good to be near her and talk to her again. Even though it's been so long, it feels so natural.

Well after midnight Jill falls asleep. I stay up and talk with Cassie for awhile linger until I can no longer keep my eyes open.

Unsurprisingly, I dream about vampires. In my dream we are in an unknown place for the Summer Olympics. The place is beautiful, taken right out of a story book. There were vines crawling up the side of the ancient Greek style stadium. The sky was bluer than in have ever seen it before. The American flag waves high above the stadium and Cassie steps up to accept her gold medal. As she smiles to the crowd, the lights reflect off her fangs. I rush into the arena to congratulate her. As I am running to the podium, her competitors chase me. The bear their teeth and growl at me. I yell to Cassie for help. She looks away from her fans in the stands and looks into my terrified eyes. Her eyes are not the golden color that they were tonight. They are coal black and hungry. As I get near to her, she back flips off of the podium and lands in a crouch in front of me.

"Leave him be," she orders. A sudden wave of fear blows through them. They back up instinctively. Cassie takes a step toward them; away from me. I step up with her, pulling a long silver knife from my back pocket. I stand with my best friend as they close in little by little. The vampire in front lunges at us. We stand together. Just as his sharp fingers are about to make contact with our faces…

…I wake up.

"Chase," Cassie calls. So it was not just a dream. She really is here and she really is a vampire.

"Chase, Jill and I have to leave. We have to catch our flight." I hoist my body up off her thigh where I fell asleep. She stayed in that same place all night. It must be weird not sleeping.

It takes a bit of effort but in a minute I am standing. I take Cassie in my arms just like I did last night. I am not surprised to find that her skin is cold as ice. I grip her tightly and I don't want to let go. I don't want to lose her again, but at least I understand this time. I feel the tears slipping quietly down my face.

"Be careful," I whisper into her ear. I know she can hear me with her new super hearing. She hugs me tightly.

"You're my best friend, Chase, and you always will be."

**A/N: Don't say it, Kels! Don't say the "S" word!!! Damn it's almost time to go back to school! Oh, I said it!!! Bad, Kelsey! One more week of summer, and I'm not too happy about it. **


	19. I Wish She Knew

**A/N: Sorry it's been so long! School has been crazy and the whole college process is driving my slowly and surely insane. Jill and I are actually co-writing a story for our school newspaper so we've been really busy with that. Thanks for keeping with me! **

**Cassie's POV**

I hated to leave him, but I had a responsibility to my family. I tried not to think that I was hurting him again. I tried to let him know gently that this time when I left, I wasn't coming back. I tried, but the facts were hard enough for me to face.

I hugged him tight, then turned and left. I never looked back. He didn't try to stop me, and I didn't expect him to.

Jill and I decide to hunt before our flight. I am not thirsty but who knows what kind of animals the Volturi allow in their city. It might be awhile before I am allowed to hunt in a forest again. We drain a handful of rabbits and a couple of deer each before we set off to the airport.

Jill blends in better than I do in the crowds of people at the airport, but I'm used to the unsure glances by now. Human instinct tells them to keep their distance from me but natural awe and curiosity has the opposite affect.

We board out flight at 8:15 am. Jill and I don't talk much at the airport. Neither of us want to think about the danger and risk that we are facing in taking this journey. I block out the thoughts of the other travelers. I check every once in awhile to make sure that I still have a good hold on Bella's and Edward's powers. That is crucial to my plan, and we are doomed without it. I'm still holding strong, so there's no excuse not to go through with this.

Part of me wants to turn around and go home. I want to go back to Alice and Jasper and just wait in agony for the Volturi to find us, but this is up to me. I can't tell Jill exactly what I'm planning on doing once we get into the city in case we get separated. There is silence between us for the rest of the journey.

"This is it," I breathe as the cloaked figures stalk us down the alleyway. "There's no turning back now."

"Yup," is all that Jill says. She glances behind her nervously wishing the three Volturi guards weren't between us and our only way out.

"Morning, gentlemen," I call to our pursuers. Jill jumps back, startled by my sudden outburst.

"Hello, ladies," one of the Guards calls back. I stop and wait for them. Jill shoots me a look that's clearly questioning my sanity. I hold my ground as we are slowly and surely surrounded. More vampires creep out of the shadows on all sides. Soon, Jill and I stand back to back, facing our enemies on all sides. There will be no fighting our way out of this. They've got us; now let the fun begin.

**Lauren's POV**

Brendan and Jake weren't able to find Cassie in Jill the night they ran off. Two days passed; then three; then four. The rest of us went back to school and acted as if everything was normal; that there was nothing odd about the random disappearance of our four friends. Alice and Jasper had not returned yet. They'd called once from Ontario Canada just to check in and make sure that everything was fine at home. Bella had begged them to come back, but Alice had insisted that they needed more time. More time for what, we don't know. She promised that they would be back by tonight, after a week of absence.

The dismissal bell finally rings and teenagers swarm into the halls; awakened from the sleepy trance that most were in during their classes. I meet the Cullen's at their cars as has become routine and climb into the backseat of Edward's Volvo with Nessie. Everyone is silent as we pull into the driveway of the Cullen's house. Bella stares at Edward the whole ride. When we pull into the yard, Edward's face brightens and he breathes a sigh of relief.

"Finally," he says as he gets out of the car and goes around to open Bella's door. The two of them run into the house together at vampire speed. Nessie and I follow at a human (and half-human) sprint. When we get into the house, Edward is on the couch, his head in his hands. Bella sits next to his; her arms wrapped around his shoulders. Alice and Jasper are standing in the center of the living room.

"Mind filling us in?" Emmett asks Alice as he and Rosalie come through the front door behind us.

"Cassie and Jill are in Italy. I don't know what exactly she's planning, but she's pretty adamant about it." Alice explains.

"Why did you have to go?" Nessie asks her.

"She wanted to make a stop before she went to Italy. If we had stayed, Edward would have found out where she was going and we probably would have gone up to Alaska and dragging her back here."

"You're right. We wouldn't have let her go, and for whatever reason, this was necessary. Wait… did you say she went to Alaska?" says Bella.

"Yes. She went home one last time."

"You realize what that means, don't you?" Emmett asks the room at large.

"It means she not planning on living long enough to visit there again. That was her final goodbye to her old life, and her sacrifice is her goodbye to us, I guess." Rose answers.

"I certainly hope it doesn't end up that way," Carlisle says from where he stands in the kitchen doorway with Esme. "I wish she could know how proud I am of her, and that we are grateful to her for what she has done."

"Yeah," I say, "I really wish she knew that."

**A/N: I know this is way short, and to be honest I wrote it awhile ago. Please stick with me and I promise there is more to come. After all, the story has just begun.**


	20. Please Read

I'm being really mean and I know it. For my English class, I'm writing a compare/contrast essay on Twilight vs. Harry Potter. If anybody reading this could please check out my profile and vote on the Twilight vs. Harry Potter poll I will love you forever.

Sorry to disappoint those who thought that this was an update.

As for my excuse for not updating, I'm taking on NanoWriMo, aka National Novel Writing Month. 50,000 words in 30 days doesn't leave much time for fan fiction. I apologize. I'll get to this, I promise…so long as you take part in my poll.

If anyone is really opinionated on the topic of Harry Potter vs. Twilight, please message me. I welcome any points of argument for either side.

Thanks so much and thanks for sticking with me.

~Kelsey


	21. The Deal

**A/N: WHO LOVED THE NEW MOON MOVIE??? I DID!!!!!**

**THANK YOU CHRIS WIETZ FOR SHOWING US HOW IT'S DONE!**

**Cassie's POV**

"Well look who we have here," a vampire on my left growls as he looks at Jill behind me. "Felix?"

Felix lumbers out of the ring of surrounding vampires. He stands protectively in front of his daughter, facing his companions.

"Let's take them to Aro," he demands. The other vampires seem to be a bit intimidated by Felix. They close in on us and we are shepherded further down deep into the alley. Felix grips Jill around the shoulder and she hugs fiercely around his waste. I block out the wonderings and the speculations circulating through the minds of the vampires around me and practice expanding Bella's shield to protect Jill and her father. He strokes her hair as we walk.

I tap into his thoughts for just a second. He is glad to have his little girl back, but he is afraid for us. He is afraid that Aro will have us killed because of who I am and who my family is.

I knew that that was a possibility when I came in. was I not planning on not making it home? I can't lie, even to myself, I am scared to death. Surely Aro will consider taking me, but I never considered the possibility that he would kill me before I got the chance to strike a deal with him.

I will make myself heard. I will intrigue him with my power. He will accept me into his guard. And I will take down the all-powerful Volturi. Now, only now, I am realizing how far-fetched this plan sounds. Not a great time to second guess myself as they lead me to the sewer entrance of the Volturi headquarters.

I keep my face smooth and calm. My mask fools the vampires who glance at me curiously; wondering if my death will be their entertainment today or if I will be their new comrade. Their thoughts are divided as far as which of those outcomes they would each prefer.

Now that we are a bit more spread out, I estimate that there are roughly 15 guard members in our procession, including Felix. Did they leave anyone behind? I know that the Guard has grown, but these numbers are crazy.

I know one thing for certain. I trust Jill completely and as long as she trusts me, Felix will be on my side. That's a step in the right direction.

_This has to work, _I think desperately. _My family depends on it. _The Volturi can do what they want with me, but they're going to have to leave my family alone.

Our procession takes us through the long underground tunnels and into the castle that is home to the Volturi. We enter the hall that I once saw in Edward's memory. They were here once, Edward, Bella and Alice. They were judged here as I am about to be. Their lives were almost ended here, too. I sure hope I get lucky like they did.

"Good evening, Jane," Felix mumbles as we spy Jane alone in the hall.

I double check to make sure that I have a good hold on Edward's gift. For just a moment, I am bombarded with the thoughts of those around me. Little Jane's thoughts are the most sadistic of all. She has noticed my golden eyes. She hopes Aro gives me what she feels all "vegetarian" vampires deserve. I have to work to hide my shudder of fear at the images in her head. I instinctively check to make sure that Bella's power is shielding me from her.

I pull myself together as we stop in the center of the room and the crowd around us begins to migrate to the outer edges of the circular room. Only Felix remains in the center of the room with Jill and me. I take a step between him and the thrones that obviously belong to the brothers. I will not let Felix be punished for my coming here. I will do the talking, not him. My eyes lock with him as I turn to face the door I expect the brothers to come in from. He nods solemnly. His eyes communicate his gratitude for my bravely and I don't have to read his mind to know that he is grateful to me for bringing his daughter back to him.

I hear them from outside the door; the three sets of virtually silent footsteps approaching the hall. Jane obediently goes and pulls open the doors for the brothers who come in all high and mighty and take their seats. I have to control my rage at them. All that they have put me and my family through and they come in here like they rule the world and sit comfortably on their thrones. What nerve!

I calm myself and open up my mind to their thoughts. Aro knows of me. He has heard talk of me from other vampires that I have come in contact with. He knows that I have some sort of powerful gift but he does not know what it is, just like no one outside of my family knows of my talent. Still, he is intrigued that I am here. With that, the worst part is over. He won't be killing me on the spot. I relax a little. Now, I'm in control.

"Aro," I say boldly. He is surprised by my confidence. I'm sure that everyone else whom he meets in this room is usually dry sobbing at his feet. This must be quite a change of pace. I see my assumption reflected in his mind. The faces of dozens of begging vampires flash through my head before he starts thinking about the last contact he had with my family. He was bested by them then, and he has not forgotten the embarrassment. He is remembering his resentment for my family, now. I'll give him credit for one thing: it didn't take as long for him to rebuild his kingdom as my family expected.

"Hello, Cassandra," he smirks, his internal battle of curiosity for me vs. hatred for my family rages in his mind. To kill me, or not to kill me? He is undecided. My guard is up again, I'll have to tread lightly.

"Carlisle sends his regards," I mention politely, reinforcing my connection to my family in a gentle way.

"It's been too long. We've been meaning to pay our dear friend Carlisle a visit for some months now."

"That's why I'm here. I have come as a representative of my family. I've come to make you a deal."

"Cutting right to the chase, are we?" He asks suspiciously. Out of the corner of my eye I see a boy about my age enter the room and stand next to Jane. He is staring at me intently. Maybe more intently than the rest are staring.

"I am," I start pacing the room with an air of confidence. Aro hangs on my every word. "You've taken on the Cullens before, Aro. They know perfectly well why you have not paid them a visit." I peek into the watching boy's mind. Alec is intrigued by my boldness. I remember what I was told about his talent. Thank Carlisle he is here; I could use his power if anything goes horribly wrong.

"You say 'they'; do you not include yourself?" Aro picks up on my wording.

"_They_ are the reason that I am here. I have come on their behalf. I am the most powerful member of my family, which you know quite well. I am here to protect them." I listen to his thoughts as he processes my words. He is trying to figure out what I am getting at and what he should do.

"Continue," is all he says.

"I have come to make you am offer," I bask in my own cocky attitude. My own arrogance and over-confidence is my only way out of here alive. It is key to my plan. That is a quality that Aro admires, he doesn't want weaklings in his Guard. My attitude communicates that he should want what I have to offer.

"I'm listening," _I know, Aro. _He is eating this up.

"I have come to offer you my services in exchange for you sparing my family." I announce. Every eye of every watching vampire shoots to Aro. All except for Alec who continues to watch me. I don't waver in my confidence. I listen to Aro pondering my offer. He is liking the idea of having me, though he doesn't know what my power is. He is unsure about the sparing of my family. He is undecided.

"I come and serve on your Guard, and you leave my family alone. That is my proposal. Though I do have specifications. Would you like to hear them before you make a decision?" I ask cheerfully, as if I am offering him the world on a silver platter, but he can't have Antarctica.

"Of course," he says. I keep my voice light and cheerful.

"You will me courteous of my hunting needs. I have no problem with hunting away from the city, but I will need to be allowed that opportunity. Secondly, you will not ask about my powers. I promise to do what I can for you with what I can do. Lastly, this agreement will be broken if you so much as think about harming my family."

Aro thinks over my plans. He is particularly interested in what I am hiding as far as my powers. The idea intrigues him. He is repelled from my agreement by the terms considering my family. He is unsure about my hunting habits. He thinks that he could break me of my resolve against human blood in time. His curiosity outweighs his doubts. After all, he can always kill me and solve that problem easily enough.

Aro rises from his throne and turns to touch the hand of each of his brothers. They are both thinking along the same lines as he is. Marcus is surprisingly enthusiastic about the arrangement. Finally, Aro turns to me. I see the thought form in his mind before he deliberately stretches out his hand to me.

"Welcome to the Guard," he says, offering me a handshake. I knew that he would try this. Thank you, Bella. I take his hand and listen to his speculating thoughts about his inability to read my thoughts. The last time he saw this ability was Bella and that was the reason that they could not take down my family. Suddenly he is unsure that he made the right decision.

I hear the approaching voices coming at the same time that Aro does. I also hear the thoughts of all the hungry vampires around me who are about to be served. Felix drags Jill to the side of the room. He keeps a tight hold on her as the heavy doors open and the humans file in. Some take pictures, others gaze at the architecture or the ancient beings around them. Some shudder at the unpleasant feeling in the room. The doors slam shut behind them and a few of the vampires stand guard. Aro turns to me with a knowing grin on his face and I know that I won't be allowed to leave now.

"Come now, Cassie. Won't you stay for dinner?"

**A/N: I'm not sure that this chapter is quite as intense as I pictured it all happening. Oh well. Dinner time, wonder what's going to happen. Will she crack when fresh blood is presented to her in the frenzy of feeding? To be perfectly honest, I haven't decided that myself.**


	22. Dinner in Voltera

**A/N: I'm sorry I've taken so long. I know, it's about time! Things have been crazy. Thanks for sticking with me. **

**In case you've forgotten, Cassie and Jill have left home and are in Voltera. Cassie has just made a deal with Aro (ch.21) and Aro is forcing her to stay for dinner. **

**WARNING: Some of the following paragraphs at the beginning of this chapter are a bit graphic. Sorry about that. I'm honestly not a sicko and writing those parts made my stomach churn but I felt it had to be included to really get a sense of that is happening. It's honestly more sad than gory so don't let that stop you from reading.**

Their thoughts begin to panic, mothers grip their children, fathers try to shield their families. The humans know now that they were in immediate danger. Their thoughts are scared and upset. My head spins with the weight of the humans' fearful thoughts. It overwhelms me.

As powerful as the humans' thoughts are, they are nothing in comparison to the thoughts of the vampires present. I back up, away from the humans, and pressing myself against the wall. I hear bloodlust, and thirst. I hear the anticipation of the vampires to begin their feast.

…And their thirst becomes my thirst…

Aro steps forward and snaps the neck of an old man who was brave enough to stand at the front of the group. His last thought is that he will be joining his wife in heaven. He dies peacefully - or at least more peacefully than all of the other humans will tonight.

Aro takes a deep whiff of the corpse before sinking his teeth into the old man's neck. I stop breathing as the blood begins to flow, but the vampires restrain themselves. Marcus and Caius each sniff around, making their selections. So that's the way it works here. The brothers get first choice.

The vampires are hardly able to restrain themselves while Marcus and Caius make their choices: Marcus chooses a man in his 30's, Caius a young girl about 5. He rips her away from her mother. The emotion that I feel when I hear the desperate shriek of the mother counters the venom that is swimming in my mouth. Holding my breath isn't enough to smother my thirst for the fresh, warm, delicious blood in the room. I try not to listen to the thoughts of the hysterical mother as she tries in vain to retrieve her daughter from certain death. The little girl is crying, but doesn't fully understand what is happening. Her confusion distracts her as one of the guards breaks the neck of her mother and the mother's screams suddenly stop. My heart breaks for the woman and her daughter who are facing this terrible fate.

The scent of human blood fills my mind. My mouth floods with venom and I long to experience the taste that accompanies that sweet smell. I watch the veins in the neck of a middle age man thump against his shallow skin. He is the prey, I am the hunter. The indescribable pain that resisting is causing me. There would be no better experience in the world than to taste the blood of the human in front of me. My careful control is slowly but steadily slipping away my head spins with the thirst. I listen to the fast beating hearts of the humans. The hearts that pump that delicious blood through their veins. The hearts that are so vulnerable; that could be destroyed so easily.

Then I look at his face. A face that is a human being. I try to picture that face without the panic stricken fear in place. I picture it with a smile. A happy man. I know that I can't kill this man. I turn to face the wall and block out all the thoughts that are pushing their way into my head. I don't dare breathe, fearing that the scent of the blood will be too much for me.

Vaguely I hear Jill's thoughts reaching out to me. She is thinking about Carlisle and the rest of my family back home. I have to be strong for them. They are the reason that I am here. I refuse to let them down. I cut myself off from the world around me; emptying my mind of all thought. Thinking of nothing. Picturing only a picture of my family, smiling and waving at me. I hear nothing from outside my own brain. I hear the laughter and encouragement of the voices of my family calling to me, begging me to be strong.

"You can do it!" shouts Nessie.

"I'm so proud of you," says Carlisle. This one line makes all the stress and pain go away instantly. If Carlisle is proud of me for not killing the humans, then I will never ever kill a human. For Carlisle I can endure all this torture all over again, as I'm sure I will.

I don't feel Jill pushing my arm until Felix knocks me over and I am shaken out of my daydream. I was so lost in watching my beloved family that I didn't notice when dinner ended. Looking around I see that the room is mostly empty of vampires and the corpses of the humans have been disposed of. I survived my first non-vegetarian dinner without disappointing myself and my family. I feel shamed when I think of all the human lives that I was powerless to save tonight. If everything goes as planned within the next few months, tourists in Italy will no longer have to worry about being eaten by these vampires.

"Well," Aro says, wiping a last drip of blood from his chin and licking it off his middle finger, "It seems that the Cullens really have rubbed off on you. You really should accept it, young one. You are one of us. Killing humans is in accordance to the natural order of things."

"Nothing about being a vampire is natural." I growl back at him. He flinches only slightly as the venom in my voice surprises him. He shakes it off quickly.

"Jane, Alec," he addresses the twins who step to stand before them, "If you would escort Cassandra to the empty room in the East wing. I do believe she will like it there."

"Might I remind you again of the conditions under which I am staying? The conditions that you have agreed to? You must mind my hunting needs, not ask about my powers, and you must not even think about approaching my family under any circumstances." I re-list our agreement.

"I have agreed to your terms. Alec will escort you outside the city walls to hunt after nightfall." Aro assures me.

"Thank you, sir."

While I walk behind Alec and Jane through the hall and to the lobby, I listen in on Aro's thoughts. Waiting for something very specific to appear there.

_She is the most powerful of the Cullen coven, but what is it she can do? Her thoughts are concealed from me. She has traded her services for the assured protection of her family…_

I am almost to the edge of my mind reading range when I hear it:

_Does she really think that just because she is here I am going to spare her family? She came willingly to me, she will be spared. Any others who wish to join me will be reunited with her. _

_The rest will have to die._

So quickly he has released me from out agreement and unknowingly given me my freedom. With that thought Aro has broken our deal.

Just as I knew he would.

Game on.

**A/N: Ok, so I was going to make the deal breaker in a later chapter but I figured I would fast-forward a bit so as to better entertain you. That's why it's a little bit choppy. I'm not exactly satisfied with it as a writer but I have to keep the story moving. Thanks so much for your continued support! And thanks for bearing with me and my delayed updates. I'm a busy girl. **


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